Some things are better left Unsaid
by avidficreader
Summary: "Mmmm"She moaned as she continued to devour her treat with tightly shut eyes.A bit of the juice was dripping from the side of her lips but Hermione didn't seem to care as she continued chewing.Draco meanwhile was transfixed.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello!**

**I'm back with a new fic this time!**  
><strong>It's a DracoHermione!**

**I know there are gazillion Dramione's out there, but what to do? They make a couple with which several plots can be dished out!**

**And this plot just came to me one day while I was in the shower. Like all other ideas ;)**

**I don't know how it's going to go but I do know that it's going to be a romance but one with some hurt and angst.**

**And the progression is going to be slow.**

**So for those who are expecting quick Dramione moments, I'm really really sorry to say that you will be disappointed with the speed, but if you do stick with it, then hopefully it won't be so bad!**

**I can tell you one thing though,**  
><strong>the eventual ending will be happy!<strong>

**I'm a sucker for good endings!**

**Thanks for reading my rant and I sincerely hope you enjoy this fic!**

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><em><strong>SUMMARY<strong>_ _- A forbidden liaison. If it could even be called that. Just like the hatred between the Montague's and Capulet's. But this wasn't about families. More about blood purity. And age old prejudices. But unlike Romeo and Juliet, they didn't fight for their love. Until, they realised that the doubts were not due to external influences but were deep within them and it was safer to let go than to embrace._

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**CHAPTER 1.**

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Hermione Granger washed her hands painstakingly to remove any traces of the thick vile smelling potion that she had just smeared on the wounds of her patient.

2 owls were perched on her desk, waiting patiently till she was done and retrieved the letters meant for her.

She was familiar with Paris and Sinatra. And they with her. Many a letters had been exchanged via the two owls. And in the last 16 months alone, they probably had been going to and fro from their owners to her almost every week. Sometimes twice.

She sighed a resigned sigh and wiped her hands on the napkin hanging next to the basin.

Holding out a couple of biscuits for the owls, she petted them sweetly and took hold of her letters, expecting them to fly away after their job. But she knew they wouldn't. Not until she wrote a reply.

She sighed again.

That's how it had been for almost for a year.

The owls would not budge unless they had a reply from her.

Cursing their owners, she had tried everything to get rid of them without replying.

First she would try to always keep her windows shut.

But owls are mostly patient and dutiful creatures. Unless of course they are made to wait for long and then they can turn impatient. They will peck at the glass of the window till either the glass shatters or till the recipient gets fed up and finally let's them in.

That had been tried and she had naturally failed.

Then she tried to bribe them with multiple treats and tried shooing them off with wide arm gestures until she felt that she probably would fly off with so much role playing. But the owls remained where they were. Their feathers not ruffled in the least. Still waiting in a bored fashion for her to write out a reply.

Hermione could have sworn that Paris looked so bored that she actually was examining her talons like some bored socialite would look at her nails when irked.

She shook her head to get the image of that out of her mind. When one starts comparing owls to socialites, it's a sign that you have been cooped up alone for a long time without much human contact.

But well she did have human contact. She saw loads of patients daily. But that's what they all were. Just patients. Not friends. And that's how she would keep them. No getting close to any patient. Detachment would be best. Patients and people die every day. And if you're detached, their death does not come as a blow.

Paris and Sinatra had finished off their biscuits and were tapping on her desk by now.

So she did what trial and error had taught her. She gathered some parchment, held a quill over it as if she were writing something. She then folded the parchment and tied them to their legs each.

They may be intelligent creatures. But even they do not know whether the letter they are carrying has words or not.

Luckily they bought this farce and swooped out of her office immediately.

That's what she had been doing ever since she had figured this trick out.

She had received several letters in response and a couple of howlers, expressing rage and disappointment at this dirty trick. But what else could she have done? There was nothing she wanted to say. And those empty pieces of parchment conveyed exactly that, Nothing.

But nothing stopped her from reading the letters. She may not have met the senders in a long time, but their letters were nice to read. She hated to admit that, but she was not averse to getting news or information. Only, she didn't care much for imparting anything.

Looking at her watch, she still had an hour till her next shift started. So she settled with the letter that Sinatra had got and a cup of tea and some biscuits.

She knew that like the others, this would be emotionally draining. So better to eat something to keep up her physical strength.

_Dear Hermione,_  
><em>I know that Sinatra is going to come back with an empty parchment.<em>  
><em>Yet I write with the hope that he comes back with a reply from you.<em>  
><em>One that consists of words and not silence.<em>  
><em>Although your silence speaks volumes always, it would be nice to really hear from you.<em>  
><em>But at least receiving that empty piece paper gives Harry and me the hope that you are receiving our letters.<em>  
><em>Though I have no indication whether you actually read them or not.<em>  
><em>I really hope you do. The Hermione I know will never leave a chance to read anything. Even if she doesn't reply.<em>  
><em>So with the hope that you really are reading this, I want to share a bit of news with you.<em>  
><em>I wish I could personally tell you, but this form should suffice for now.<em>  
><em>I'M PREGNANT!<em>  
><em>Finally. After trying for so long, Hermione ! It's finally happened.<em>  
><em>Harry's happiness knows no bounds. Until he thinks of his two best friends who were always beside him.<em>  
><em>He lost one due to the cruelty of fate. And the other as a direct consequence of that.<em>  
><em>He really misses you both, Hermione. Dearly.<em>  
><em>His happiness is marred by the thoughts that his best friend isn't there anymore to be the Godfather of his first born. <em>_And his other best friend may not want to be the Godmother._  
><em>But I know Hermione; I know that you would never refuse.<em>  
><em>We are going to have a little boy, Hermione. A little boy! And we are going to name him Ronald James.<em>  
><em>In memory of the one we miss every day.<em>  
><em>This is not a letter to invoke guilt, but one to just share our good news with you.<em>  
><em>You are the first person we have told.<em>  
><em>Even mum doesn't know yet, imagine!<em>  
><em>I know I'm going to get an empty parchment but I'll always be hoping for a real letter from you.<em>  
><em>We love you so much Hermione.<em>  
><em>I know you know that. But it won't stop me from telling you.<em>  
><em>We miss you.<em>  
><em>Please come back.<em>  
><em>Give us our Hermione back.<em>  
><em>Give Ronald James the chance to know his Aunt Hermione.<em>  
><em>Please.<em>

_Love always,_  
><em>Harry and Ginny.<em>

Hermione was crying by the time she finished the letter.

She missed Harry dearly. She loved him very much and Ginny had shared such joyous news! She almost regretted not replying.

A Little Potter was coming into the world. And she couldn't be happier. And they were going to name him after Ron.

A fresh wave of tears started and she sat there, silently letting them trail a path across her pale cheeks and terminating into her robes.

She missed them too. And loved them. But she wasn't ready to go back yet. She could not bear to meet them yet. They all would remind her of Ron. And she was not ready for that yet.

But some day she would be. And that day little Ronald James would meet his Godmother.

Wiping her dried tears, she placed Ginny's letter under a paper weight and went to retrieve the letter Paris had got.

She probably would need more energy to read this letter. It was sure to be harsher.

She opened the letter, to be welcomed by the personal letterhead logo that she was very familiar with, which belonged to Draco Malfoy.

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**So that's it.**

**The first chapter.**

**I know many things are not clear but hopefully as the chapter's progress, it will clear itself.**

**Thank you for reading!**

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	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to,**

**CinziaTwut - my first reviewer**  
><strong>SaruDM,<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai,<strong>  
><strong>Laura T,<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi,<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ,<strong>

**For reviewing!**

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**CHAPTER 2.**

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Her hands were shaking while she opened the next letter.

She never knew what to expect from Draco's letters.

When Harry or Ginny wrote, they would plead her to come back, swear by their love and generally relay the news about things going on in England.

But Draco's letters could be as moody as him.

Sometimes he was sweet, telling her about what he was up to, the places he visited, the countries he played against, his frustration at losing a game or inability to catch the snitch, rare as it was.

Sometimes he was short, just writing to make a show of sending her a letter. Once, in an act of absolute frustration, he had also sent Hermione an empty letter, just like she did.

Sometimes he would plead. Just like Ginny. Pleading her to tell him something. Anything. Where she had disappeared to? How she was doing? If she still wanted to hear from him?

Since he never received any answers, he assumed that she was, indeed reading his letters. So he continued to write. So what if she didn't want to tell him anything? He wanted to tell her everything. He always did. Even when his letters were short due to anger, he made up by sending multiple letters a week. So that she wouldn't miss anything that was happening in his life.

It had been more than a year since he had heard from her. And at least 3 years since he had met her.

The only connection he had with her were the empty pieces of parchments she sent. And he had tried every charm possible on it. Hoping to reveal anything that could be hidden in it. Maybe she had written but just didn't want him to read. Maybe she was teasing him as usual and urging him to use his brain like she always did. But nothing revealed. They just stood there, bare, naked, exposed. Like how he felt.

He had saved every such letter sent by her. They were nothing, he knew. But he could never get himself to dispose them.

Most times, however the letter went, it would always end with the same note. Pleading her to tell him where she was. Just so he knew.

Sighing again, she started reading as usual.

_Hermione,_  
><em>it's been long since someone called me a Death eater spawn.<em>  
><em>Actually, ages.<em>  
><em>It doesn't surprise me, no.<em>  
><em>It doesn't hurt either.<em>  
><em>Neither does it enrage me.<em>  
><em>I know you'll be surprised to hear that I feel none of the emotions that I usually would in such a scenario.<em>  
><em>It's a sign that I've matured. No?<em>  
><em>I think so.<em>  
><em>Do you think that as a prize for my newfound maturity, you could perhaps tell me where you are?<em>  
><em>Please?<em>  
><em>You're not going to, are you?<em>  
><em>I can almost imagine you rolling your eyes and thinking that the fact I asked for a prize shows that I'm not mature enough yet.<em>  
><em>Anyway, so I was pondering over why I didn't get angry or smack him in the jaw.<em>  
><em>I realised that what he said was true.<em>  
><em>My father was a death eater, wasn't he? And me his spawn.<em>  
><em>So there you go..<em>  
><em>It was the truth.<em>  
><em>No question of getting angry over something true.<em>  
><em>But the tone he used was surely insulting.<em>  
><em>I may have experienced some irritation at that.<em>  
><em>Just because my father was death eater, it doesn't mean I was too.<em>  
><em>I am not my father.<em>  
><em>But these people will never learn that.<em>  
><em>So I do what you have been telling me since years, ignore them.<em>  
><em>And I must admit, it helps.<em>  
><em>Okay, you must immediately burn this letter after you're done with it since I will not have proof lying around that shows I agreed with Hermione Granger and actually heeded her advice.<em>  
><em>That would be a disgrace!<em>  
><em>Malfoy's don't listen to other people!<em>  
><em>Anyway, on a better note, we won the last game of this season.<em>  
><em>I'm sure you don't follow Quidditch wherever you are.<em>  
><em>You never liked the game anyway.<em>  
><em>But it's in me to brag that I was deemed player of the season, again.<em>  
><em>And soon we will be touring a few more countries, recruiting new talent and having a few friendly matches.<em>  
><em>So nothing exceedingly exciting but I think I need the break.<em>  
><em>I'm sure you could do with a break too.<em>  
><em>I bet you barely go home.<em>  
><em>You must be on a perpetual 24 hour shift at the hospital.<em>  
><em>This is assuming that my guesses of you still being in the healing profession are correct.<em>  
><em>I'm sure that you would never, ever give up on that. However broken you may be.<em>  
><em>I may not know where you are Hermione, but I do know that you're still hurting.<em>  
><em>And let me make it abundantly clear that you're hurting me as well.<em>  
><em>But it's ok.<em>  
><em>We never asked anything of each other in the past and I'm not beginning to ask. Ever.<em>  
><em>But Potter really misses you.<em>  
><em>He's only a shadow of the man he was.<em>  
><em>Even if I do say so myself.<em>  
><em>(Now you HAVE to burn this letter. It's getting incriminating enough, what with me feeling bad for Potter)<em>  
><em>Between us, we held no expectations in life.<em>  
><em>But you left a life behind. A life that you were a part of. A life that was a part of many other lives.<em>  
><em>They surely still hold expectations from you.<em>  
><em>And the disgusting Gryffindor that you are, I don't know how long you'll be able to hide.<em>  
><em>I know that the Weasel left you, but Merlin, he had no choice.<em>  
><em>You've left everyone even though you had a choice.<em>  
><em>Don't tell me where you are if you don't want to.<em>  
><em>But please. Get back with your friends. With your... Family.<em>  
><em>You need to. You need them. They need you.<em>  
><em>My ancestors will be rolling in agony in their graves.<em>  
><em>Draco Malfoy getting so sappy for a muggle-born.<em>  
><em>Hell, Draco Malfoy getting sappy, period.<em>  
><em>Just think about it.<em>  
><em>If I've not convinced you yet, wait for my other letters.<em>  
><em>You know I'll be waiting for yours.<em>  
><em>Even if it doesn't have anything in it.<em>

_Love,_  
><em>Draco.<em>

_Ps: burn it NOW!_

Hermione was crying again. But this time they were laughter tears.

She doubted that Draco even knew how funny his letter sounded when someone else read it, but she could not help laughing.

It was uncanny how her mood always got better, she always cheered up after hearing from him.

If she was having a bad day,it would not seem so bad all of a sudden. If she was having a good day, it would only get better after hearing from him. She never remembered any instance when he didn't make her feel good.

He was what she referred to him as her "Feel Good Factor".

Sometimes, when he was in a good mood, he wrote about the most inane things and his sharp wit and subtle sarcasm showed through his words.

She was relieved that this was not an emotionally upheaving letter. There was just this much she could take in one day.

She was proud of him when he wrote that he didn't get angry at his offender.  
>He really had matured.<p>

Okay maybe not that much. He had after all sent a copy of Witch Weekly to her that featured him on the cover page as England's sexiest sportsman.

Some things like vanity just can't be erased. Toned down, yes. But not completely erased.

She had been in an exceptionally good mood the whole day after receiving that stupid, mindless magazine. Even her juniors had noticed.

Hermione smiled at the memory.

He just wouldn't give up.

She was surprised at the irony. It was not in Draco's nature to emote so much or even write a letter for that matter.

He had always apparated or flooed to give some news or talk, even generally. He absolutely despised writing letters as a mode of communication.

He would rather talk and get it over with.

Hermione, on the other hand, wrote long letters, even after Draco had left England. It would be similar to the letter she had received from him, long and detailed. Talking about nothing in particular. Just daily stuff. Some important stuff. Some unimportant.

She would be a carefree soul, writing as she thought and felt.

After her marriage to Ron, Draco had grudgingly accepted the fact that he would not be able to apparate or floo her as often as he used to for mundane, useless chats.

So he had adopted her way of communication. Those blasted letters. That's when he had bought Paris.

Of course he had owned owls before. But Paris was meant only to deliver letters to Hermione. And her name held special meaning too. Hermione was sure that Draco had a reason behind naming the owl. But he had never mentioned it in his letters. So she could not be too sure. Maybe it was just a coincidence. Paris was after all his favourite city.

So they continued to communicate via letters. Her's would be long and colourful and his would be to the point. Not short or angry. Just to the point.

Hermione wasn't offended. Not in the least. She was used to Draco's hatred for letters. But he never forgot to write back and answer all her questions.

How the roles had been reversed.

The man, who absolutely abhorred writing letters, wrote foot after foot, about anything and everything.

And the woman whose strength lay in words, sent letters that had none.

She never answered his questions.

And just like Hermione, Draco was never offended.

Because that's what their friendship was. Just that. They were always there for each other. No expectations and no explanations. No apologies.

As long as she continued to send those naked pieces of parchment, Draco was satisfied.

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**I know that Draco sounds extremely out of character, but I thought that since the pairing itself is so OOC, it won't hurt to make him OOC as well.**

**He's still Draco Malfoy though ;)**

**Vain and arrogant.**

**I'm aware that this chapter has not cleared anything but rather increased questions.**

**But I'm easing into the story.**

**There's a style I want to try out writing, but I'm still working on it.**

**I'm sure that soon you all will know more!**

**Thank again for the reviews!**

**Hope you liked the chapter!**

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	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to,**

**SaruDM**  
><strong>Shivv<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>LyndahJune<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>

**For their reviews.**

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**CHAPTER 3.**

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"Ouch!" Little Joanne screamed into her mum's arm.

"Just a little bit more. You'll be as good as new in one more crack." Hermione cajoled her patient.

With a final wave and a loud crack, Hermione healed Joanne's dislocated ankle.

"There. You're as good as new now, Joanne. Was it really that bad?" Hermione asked, handing her a chocolate frog.

She shook her head shyly, tears still running down her face, clutching her chocolate frog in a death grip in one hand and her mother's arm with her remaining hand.

"Thank you so much Healer Weasley. You shouldn't spoil her with sweets every time she comes though." Joanne's mother remarked.

"Then perhaps Joanne should stop coming here so often to be healed." Hermione said turning towards the little girl. "Is there any bone you haven't broken in there, Jo?"

"She never looks. She's always running about in a hurry and is the clumsiest child I've seen." Joanne's mother sighed.

Hermione smiled. "Well it's a good thing that she's a witch. Imagine healing her the muggle way."

"I am so thankful." Jo's mother exclaimed.

"Look Healer Weasley, my chocolate frog is Ronald Bilius Weasley. He's also a Weasley. Is he the same as your Weasley?" Jo remarked innocently.

Hermione sucked in her breath for a moment. Hearing Ron's name from someone else was not a common occurrence. She barely spoke to anyone. Save for the letters, no one mentioned Ron's name.

Joanne's mother seemed to sense Hermione's discomfort. "Jo sweetie, what have I told you about asking people personal questions?"

"Uhh." She struggled to remember."Not to?" She asked tentatively.

Hermione smiled at the little girl's innocence. "Yes dear. He was my husband."

Joanne seemed content with Hermione's answer and she got caught up in preventing her frog from running away.

Her mother noticed Hermione's use of past tense. "Shall we go now dear?" She asked her daughter.

"May I leave Healer Weasley?" Jo asked Hermione.

"Not unless you promise me that if you come here again, it's only to say hello and not with anything broken." Hermione said.

She solemnly nodded.

"Thanks Healer. Good day." Jo's mother said.

"Goodbye!" Jo piped.

"Take care Joanne." Hermione said as she waved back.

"Phew." Hermione said as she washed her hands.

Hearing Ron's name and dealing with it had taken more energy than she had thought it would.

It had been 16 months since he had passed but the void he left was still fresh.

Or maybe she had never given herself the chance to heal properly.

For the longest time she was in denial and when the acceptance finally set in, she was alone and refused to surround herself by anyone that would remind her of her old life.

She had received no conditioning to his death and as a result was still passively grieving his loss.

She dabbed her wet eyes with the same napkin she had used to wipe her hands.

She held the napkin for many minutes on her eyes, trying to ebb the flow of her tears, willing them to stop.

I don't have time to mourn. I still have my rounds left. My night shift has just started. Please stop. Please. She pleaded to herself.

After a few minutes, her eyes dried and she seemed to have exhausted her tear quota of the day. With building melancholy minus the tears, she got up and took hold of her wand and made her way towards the paediatric ward where her duty had been assigned.

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She reached home by noon after her shift was done. She had had a relatively light night. If she wanted, she could have even slept straight for 5 hours without being disturbed. But over the last year she had started suffering from insomnia and if she was in the hospital she never took a sleeping draught.

Though at home if she didn't take the draught, she would barely sleep and be completely tired the next day.

She opened her cupboard to get the potion bottle and her eyes went over to the drawer that was slightly open. Wondering why it was open she went ahead to shut it but after some thought she opened it fully.

Some knick knacks were kept in it and Hermione realised that she had not gone through this drawer in a long time. Shuffling through it, she looked about the drawer wondering if she would find something useful or something that she may have been looking for but had never found.

An old pair of earrings that Luna had gifted her on her 19th birthday which were in the shape of an orange slice, a broken key, some rolled up pieces of parchment, a few quills, her old Gryffindor scarf, a blue ribbon and ... And a silver rattle.

A small little silver rattle.

Hermione picked up the rattle with shaking fingers. Holding it in her palm, she curled her fingers over it, feeling the familiar coolness of the silver under her fingers.

_"Are you just going to sit there lazily chomping on the leftovers or are you going to help me sift through this box?" Hermione demanded, hands on hips, hair all messed up and some dirt on her nose._

_Ron looked at her for some time and then looked at his plate. Finally giving Hermione preference, he walked over to where she stood and put his hands on her waist, pulling her closer to him._

_Her face softened and he came closer to her face, his eyes darting to her lips._

_Hermione forgot about the box and leaned in. Just as she was about to kiss him, he spoke "You have dirt on nose, did you know?"_

_He chuckled and pecked her on the cheek as she stood glaring at him._

_"You are going to pay for that Ronald Weasley." She said._

_"I'll make it up to you, love." Ron said. "Now what were saying about that box?"_

_"Your mum sent this box over today. She was cleaning and found this in the attic. All your childhood stuff is in there. So I thought let's go through it. We should know what's in there at least." Hermione said._

_"Hmmm." Ron said, wrinkling his nose as dust rose when he opened the box. "I've had hand me downs most of my childhood. I wonder what could be there in this?"_

_"Only one way to find out." Hermione said as she cast a scourgify so that all dust and grime left the box._

_They found a baby fake wand, some woollen booties, a bright yellow sweater that was the first one Mrs. Weasley had knitted for Ron, a goblet, a dragon soft toy that Charlie had gifted Ron, a broken toy broomstick, some coins, a little cage that once belonged to Scabbers and a silver rattle._

_"A goblet? Why in the world would you have a goblet specially for you?" Hermione asked._

_"Oh. This is a magic goblet Hermione. I had won it in a magical fair when I was 7. Any drink you pour in it, keeps refilling till you put it upside down.I thought i had lost it." Ron said excitedly._

_"That's so cool." Hermione marvelled._

_"Tell me about it." He said excitedly. "I was addicted to pumpkin juice as a kid. Now I can use it for firewhisky."_

_"Nuh-uh. Nothing doing. You are not going to use this for anything alcoholic." Hermione glared at her husband. "Last thing I need is to enrol you into AA."_

_"AA?" Ron asked quizzically._

_"Alcoholics Anonymous." She answered automatically._

_"Huh. Whatever. But love just once? Or only on special occasions. Imagine how much money we'll save on the firewhiskey." Ron said._

_"It's money that shouldn't be spent on it in the first place." Hermione said tersely._

_"Fine!" Ron pouted._

_"This is such a cute rattle. It's silver." Hermione said holding the rattle in her palm, trying to change the subject._

_It was really miniature. Fitting completely in her palm._

_"Oh that." Ron said. "Uncle Gideon and Fabian gifted that to mum for me when I was born. I had completely forgotten about it. Mum used to tease me with it. She said I should keep it for my first born."_

_Hermione was silent for some time. She kept rolling the rattle in her hand._

_Ron looked at her beseechingly._

_"Ron. We've had this discussion before. I want children. You know I do. Just not now. It's so soon. We are so young. We have our entire life ahead of us." Hermione said._

_Ron kissed her forehead and smiled. "We do. I'm ready when you are."_

She was never ready in time.

And they never had their entire life ahead of them.

By the time she was ready, it was too late.

She held the rattle tightly as she stood against the door frame of the cupboard for support.

Of the so many things that she was guilty was, not having Ron's child when she could was the first on the list.

Wiping her tears for the second time in 12 hours, she shut the drawer and went over to her chair.

She knew what she had to do with the rattle. It was about time.

Finding a small little cloth purse, she placed the rattle lovingly in it. She also placed an empty piece of parchment in it and tugged the drawstring tightly.

On her way to the hospital tomorrow she decided to stop by the owlery and send the parcel of acknowledgement to Ginny.

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**I know it's a sad chapter :(**

**It's going to be this way for a while.**

**I inserted a piece of flashback in here.**

**Letters and flashbacks will be in italics so as to not confuse you'll while reading.**

**I hope you'll like the little past with Ron.**

**Thank you for reading!**

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	4. Chapter 4

**Hearty thanks to;**

**SaruDM**  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>samijewell<strong>  
><strong>Chelseyj<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>

**For their reviews!**

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**CHAPTER ****4.**

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_My Dearest Darlingest Hermione!_  
><em>You cannot imagine my glee when I received your little packet.<em>  
><em>I'm dancing around like Christmas came early and Harry hasn't stopped grinning like a fool since.<em>  
><em>I know that it belonged to Ron, and you giving it to the baby means a lot to us.<em>  
><em>I am so very happy that my baby will have his Aunt Hermione as his Godmother.<em>  
><em>It's a start, Mione!<em>  
><em>After receiving empty letters for more than a year, this was just heart-warming.<em>  
><em>At the cost of sounding completely greedy, I would really really love for you to write me.<em>  
><em>Anything.<em>  
><em>Does not have to be anything terribly sad or depressing.<em>  
><em>I don't even want to know upfront where you are or force you to come back.<em>  
><em>Although, I confess that I really do want you to come back.<em>  
><em>We really miss you.<em>  
><em>Especially Harry.<em>  
><em>Let us visit.<em>  
><em>Please.<em>  
><em>Send us a blind return portkey if you wish to remain secretive.<em>  
><em>But please Hermione.<em>  
><em>We want to meet you.<em>  
><em>It's been so long.<em>  
><em>Please promise me you'll think about it.<em>

_I love you and so does Harry and little Ronald!_

_Ginny._

Hermione folded the letter which exuded Ginny's enthusiasm, with a smile.

She knew that sending her the rattle had been the right thing to do.

Not only had it made Harry and Ginny so happy but also conveyed that Hermione wanted very much to be a part of her nephew's life in the future.

Maybe distant future. Who knew when? But future, nevertheless.

And she hoped she would be ready to meet them soon.

She knew she wasn't grieving in a healthy manner, so she didn't know when she would ever be ready.

But the fact that she actually read the letters that were sent to her was proof enough that she was getting better.

Her first 3 months, she had not even opened any letters.

Then one day after her morning shift, she saw a pretty redhead in the hospital sitting in the waiting area, looking extremely worried.

The receptionist had told her that her friend had burnt herself with severe injuries and currently was being treated.

Hermione looked over at the crying redhead. She greatly reminded her of Ginny.

Her own eyes misting a bit and brain bombarded by memories, she couldn't keep herself away from the letters.

She spent days reading all the letters, and she had to admit that she felt much lighter at the end of it all.

Maybe someday she would have in her to reply properly to them.

She stacked Ginny's latest letter with the others and went to prepare dinner.

She clearly remembered the day she had run away from everybody back home and come to Australia.

_At first her parents were shocked to see her. But they were happy._

_They had worried about her ever since Ron had passed and now that she was here, they were relieved._

_They wanted to take care of her._

_"Hermione, sweetheart. I know it's too early, but you need to be strong. Your in laws and friends must be worrying sick about you. I've received 2 owls from Molly and Harry already. Why won't you just let us tell them that you're here safe with us?" Mrs. Granger asked._

_"Mum. I can't deal with them. Not right now. When they'll hear where I am, they won't waste a second in coming here to take me back. And I don't think I can do that." Hermione sobbed._

_"But it's very unfair to them, sweetie. You should let them know. It's been a month. You have to face them and your life sometime or the other." Mr. Granger said kindly but in a firm voice._

_"I don't have to. I don't want to. I just want to be. Why can't you just let me be? I'm not coming in your way. I do my job, I come home, I cry. If you want to get rid of me just say so. I will leave. You don't have to push me into going back to Britain." Hermione yelled, totally misinterpreting her father's concern._

_Mr. And Mrs. Granger looked shocked at her insinuation._

_"Hermione! We never... Never think of you that way. I can't believe you just said that dear. Don't take your fathers words the wrong way. He's just looking out for you." Mrs. Granger tried soothing her._

_"If he was looking out for me he would respect my wishes." Hermione said dejectedly and left for her room._

_Mr. And Mrs. Granger gave each other worried looks. They knew their daughter would never behave in this manner normally._

_She was having trouble adjusting and they wanted to be supportive. If she didn't want anyone to know where she was, that's how they would keep it._

_Hermione woke up the next day feeling miserable._

_She knew she had been unfair to her parents. They had only her interests at heart, but she had hurt them by her allegations._

_True, she was vulnerable but she still felt bad for lashing out at them._

_She decided that day that she would not subject them to her pain._

_She wanted to be alone at this point for some time. She hated using magic on her parents but she had been a brat and they were hurt because of her._

_Besides, she really wanted to stay incognito for a while. And she was worried that her parents might cave in and tell Harry where she was._

_So she packed her belongings in the morning and apologized to her parents, she slightly confunded them so that they would be unaware of her whereabouts but would know that she had visited them and was fine. Somewhat. She also wanted them to forget their argument._

_She had hurt them enough. She left them with enough memory so as to not worry them but also they wouldn't be able to trace her or remember that she had planned on staying in Australia._

_She hated meddling with their will again, but it was for the best._

On retrospect, she shouldn't have come to her parents. But the comfort that their familiarity offered was tempting.

But she had to leave. She hated to leave. But she would come back when she was ready.

That's what she kept telling herself.

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**I'm so sorry for the long gap!**

**My phone got screwed so I couldn't type etc on it and it's been kinda a hectic couple of days!**

**I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, don't know why. Maybe coz it's sad and all and today was an extremely dull Sunday! :(**

**But I'm going to hope to write a better chapter 5!**

**Review and let me know your thoughts! Even if you didn't like it!**

**I thought this chapter cleared Hermione's present whereabouts and how she came by!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	5. Chapter 5

**Thanking,**

**SaruDM**  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>

**For your reviews.**

**.**

**.**

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**CHAPTER 5.**

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_Granger,_

_I swear I'm living out of a suitcase!_  
><em>Well of course a magically shrunken suitcase.<em>  
><em>You won't believe the amount of travelling the team has been doing.<em>  
><em>Apparently Coach Ginklehertz wants us to use this off season practicing in all types of climates.<em>  
><em>It's as if he's had a premonition that the next world cup is going to be held in the tundra or next to the equator or something.<em>  
><em>So it's my last day here today before we head out for yet another destination tomorrow.<em>  
><em>And before you even ask (not that you will actually ask, but I'm sure you'll be wondering) I'm not telling you where I am and where I'm going to be going.<em>  
><em>If you can be stubborn about your whereabouts so can I!<em>

Hermione almost giggled at this childish statement. He was right. She was wondering in her head where he was off to next.

Well, looks like he wanted information in exchange for information.

Too bad for him that the usually curious Hermione didn't want to know where his next practice was being held.

He had almost travelled the world. So wherever he was going wouldn't be a new place for sure.

_So I'm not telling you where I'm going._  
><em>But I think this is going to be the last session and then we get a month off before season practice starts again.<em>  
><em>I really need the break.<em>  
><em>Never thought I would be looking forward to a break from brooms!<em>  
><em>Speaking of breaks, do you take enough?<em>  
><em>Or have you been promoted to chief of medicine already?<em>  
><em>When you were studying to be a healer, you were bad enough.<em>  
><em>Now that you are actually one, I'm sure you live in the hospital.<em>  
><em>Do you still play the piano?<em>  
><em>Do you have one at home?<em>  
><em>Remember the big black one at my flat that was catching dust until you started playing on it?<em>  
><em>It's still catching dust.<em>  
><em>In case you want to save it, the offer still stands.<em>  
><em>In 3 weeks I will be free for a month.<em>  
><em>It's been 3 years since we met last.<em>  
><em>3 years since you played the piano in my house.<em>  
><em>Okay, I'll spell it out to you since you're obviously not making any decision.<em>  
><em>Come visit me.<em>  
><em>Or let me visit you. Please ?<em>  
><em>I bet you have all your vacation leave pending.<em>  
><em>We can catch up. Or I can catch up. You know everything that's going on with me.<em>  
><em>Let me know.<em>

_Love,_  
><em>Ferret.<em>

Hermione smiled at the use of Granger and ferret in his letter.

He had long stopped calling her Granger. He only resorted to it now when he felt particularly cheeky or affectionate.

And whenever he used Granger, Hermione would automatically call him ferret.  
>She knew he hated that name.<p>

She couldn't imagine his gall at actually telling her that she should spend his vacation with him.

She hadn't spoken to him in over a year and here he was smoothly asking her about vacation plans.

She knew he was trying to be as normal as possible.

She hated it when people behaved as if they were walking bare feet on coal around her.

He was just trying to be as normal and bring the said normalcy to her life by doing that.

And she appreciated his honesty. He treated her like a person and not some fragile doll.

Same was with Ginny. They both wrote to her what they really felt.

They yelled, screamed, expressed disapproval, shared funny and not so funny incidents with her, all as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

They were her connection to her old life. And though she didn't want to face it yet, she was glad she had the letters since it reminded her who she was.

She missed the piano. And she really missed playing it.

That was the last time she had played it.

_"I love that song." Draco said._

_He was sitting with his eyes closed, sprawled on his beige couch and feet on his table top._

_"That's why I played it." Hermione called out as she disappeared into the kitchen to come out with 2 plates of chicken sandwiches and 2 coffees._

_"I don't understand how you even stand these sandwiches." Hermione said trying not to wrinkle her nose._

_"What's wrong with them? They're perfect!" Draco said defensively._

_"Glad as I am that you've taken a liking to muggle food, this sandwich I just don't like. The cafe that sells it is so shady. I won't be surprised if its 2 days old." Hermione said._

_"Rubbish. If I hadn't told you the name of the cafe, you would have actually enjoyed it." Draco argued._

_"Perhaps. But since I know now..."_

_"Oh come on Hermione, don't be a snob. Just eat. I love the coffee. I'm going to miss your coffee." Draco said._

_"I feel like role reversals just happened here. Draco Malfoy is actually telling me not to be a snob? Do you even know how funny that sounds?" Hermione chuckled._

_"Oh please. I think the novelty should have worn out by now. It's been years we've been friends. You should have expected me to pick up on your habits, overbearing as you are." Draco said._

_"Perhaps. But I never expected a Malfoy to like stale food. Even I don't enjoy stale food. Inspite of being muggle born." Hermione teased._

_"Haha. Funny. I just love the way they marinate their chicken." Draco said._

_"Wonder how many germs they marinate into it." Hermione muttered to herself._

_"Stop Hermione. Why are you trying to ruin my sandwich?" Draco groaned._

_"Fine." Hermione resigned. "Don't come crying to me when you regurgitate that excuse for a sandwich. Anyway the rate you've been consuming coffee, I'm surprised you don't have an ulcer."_

_"Merlin Hermione! Do you ever switch off healer mode?" Draco said exasperated._

_"I almost feel I wish I hadn't introduced you to coffee." Hermione said._

_"Oh I would've found it somehow. True love always finds a way. But I love your coffee the most by far. I'll really miss it." Draco said._

_"It's your fault then you're leaving." Hermione pouted._

_"And it's also my fault that you're getting married to the weasel?" Draco teased._

_"So? I'll still be here. It's not like I can't make coffee for you if I'm married. But I certainly can't make coffee for you if you're in Japan or some other part of the globe." She pouted more._

_"Hermione you're going to be a wife. It's not like you can come over to bust my arse because I've overslept and brew me a pot every morning. You'll have your own weasels arse to bust and make your own coffee." Draco said soothingly._

_"But I'll still be your friend." She whispered sadly, looking down at her hands in her lap._

_"That you will. No marriage is going to change that." Draco said snuggling closer to her and she put her head on his shoulder._

_"You could at least stay for the wedding." Hermione said accusingly._

_Draco faltered for a minute. Of course he would stay for his best friend's wedding._

_Only this was Hermione. Even though she was his best friend, he couldn't stay for the wedding._

_Somehow he couldn't bring himself to see her getting married._

_He was happy that she loved Weasley and was marrying out of love. But he wasn't looking forward to actually being at the wedding._

_"I'm sorry sweetie. You know that this year I'm actually chosen not only as a reserve but as a player. And they start practice the day after. I have to leave tomorrow. Besides, how were you going to explain my presence at a wedding full of Granger's, Weasley's and Potter's?" Draco said trying to lighten up the mood._

_"It's my wedding Draco. The happiest day of my life so far. I wasn't planning on lying about you. You're an important part of my life and I want you to be a part of that day. I would tell everyone the truth. How they react is not my problem." Hermione said._

_"Now you don't have to tell them." Draco said._

_"I wanted to. It's not like I expect it all to be okay and happy. It's not like I feel I'm sneaking or something. It's just that I know who you are now and I'm not sorry to associate with you." Hermione said._

_"I know you're not." Draco said, kissing her forehead. "You can always just tell them, you know. If it makes you feel better."_

_"Hmm. I guess I will." Hermione said, snuggling closer, trying to make up for the distance that tomorrow would put between them._

_"I hate to say it but I'm going to miss you." Hermione sniffed._

_"I am going to miss... Your coffee sorely!" Draco said with utmost feelings._

_Hermione glared at him and used her nails to mercilessly tickle him._

_Who knew Malfoy's were unbearably ticklish?_

_"Okay I surrender!" Draco said panting. "Bloody woman."_

_"Have you packed?" Hermione asked after they had settled down and were sipping their coffee._

_"What? Already? I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon Hermione. I don't need to pack till tomorrow morning." Draco said._

_Hermione looked at him appalled. "You're going for 4 months and you've yet not packed?" She said dangerously._

_"Umm. News flash. I am a wizard. Not like I can't transfigure or conjure something."_

_"Still. I use to pack for Hogwarts a week in advance." Hermione said._

_Draco shook his head at her madness._

_Hermione got up and made her way to his bedroom._

_"Where you going?" Draco asked._

_"To pack your bags of course." Hermione called out from his room._

_He gulped his coffee down and rushed to his bedroom._

_"You're insufferable, you know that?" He said._

_She shrugged and continued packing._

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**Some more fillers into their life!**

**Hope you liked it!**

**Thank you for reading!**

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	6. Chapter 6

**Thanking,**

**MaronTodai**

**SaruDM**

**echizenochi**

**CinziaTwut**

**for their reviews!**

**.**

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><strong>CHAPTER 6.<strong>

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"Good morning Healer Weasley. My name is Katherine. And I'm a new intern here. Healer Westin asked me to come to you." Katherine said smiling brightly.

Hermione smiled at the fresh intern.

She seemed confident and happy on her first day of work at the hospital.

"Hello Katherine. Welcome to Jades Arden Hospital. We are one of the two wizarding hospitals in Sydney. The other as you must be knowing is Jades Raven. It's called JRH and here it's called JAH. I hope you have a good internship." Hermione smiled.

Katherine smiled back. "I'm starting a month early than the other interns. Like an observation. I couldn't wait to start learning. And Healer Westin said that you could help me out with that."

Hermione had taken quite a liking to this young witch here. She was only a few years younger than her and she seemed to have a yearning for healing. She reminded Hermione of her own younger self.

Hermione nodded. "I am aware of that. I appreciate your enthusiasm. Look, officially you don't start until next month. So I can't let you really do anything except follow me. In a few days time you'll learn the ropes and pave way for when you really start."

Katherine nodded eagerly. "Anything you say Healer Weasley."

Hermione smiled again and said, "Good then. We have rounds first thing in the morning. I'll brief you in on the patients. Come along."

_"Draco! Draco? Draco?" Hermione sang about as she barged into his house with a letter in her hand._

_"Wake up you sleepyhead! I have news!" Hermione yelled._

_She looked in the kitchen and bathroom before going into the bedroom._

_His room was neat enough but his bed looked like he had survived a hurricane._

_His sheets were barely covering the bed and his duvet was on the floor along with a pillow._

_His night shirt was open and it looked like he had ripped his buttons off._

_His hair was a mess and it was sticking up in all directions._

_"Oh no. Draco!" Hermione said as she put the letter on his side table and tried to wake him up._  
><em>"Draco sweetie, wake up." She whispered as she ran her hand through his hair.<em>

_This always soothed him but he seemed too deep in sleep today._

_She ran her hands down his arms protectively and called his names several times before he furrowed his brow and opened his eyes just a little bit._

_"Sshh. It's ok. You were sleeping. Nothing happened." Hermione said softly._

_"Hermione? Is that you?" Draco said in a dry hoarse voice._

_"Yes dear. It's me. Are you better now?" She asked, looking concerned._

_He didn't answer. He sat straight up and hugged her tight._

_She hugged him back and patted his back soothingly till he decided it really was her._

_"Another one?" Hermione asked as he sat up straighter and accepted the glass of water she offered him._

_He nodded._

_"Was it very bad?" She asked._

_Draco wanted to tell her that it was horrible._

_It was the cold floor of Malfoy Manor again and his deranged aunt was towering over a tortured Hermione with the knife in her hand._

_And he was right there and unable to do anything._

_Her screams were piercing his ears and he could almost feel the knife carving his flesh in tandem with its journey across her arm._

_But he couldn't tell her that this time the nightmare was about that._

_He didn't want to worry her._

_She would only tell him that it was not his fault and make him feel better._

_She thought that he was having dreams about the fiendfyre in the room of requirement and the fight that followed between Voldemort and his mother when he found out that Narcissa had lied about Harry's death._

_"Not very. I've had one after ages." He replied._

_"I'm making you a calming drought and a sleeping drought. Don't even say no. I'll shove it down your throat if I have to every night." She threatened._

_"Ooh Granger. Are you saying you're going to be at my house every night? I'll have you know that I won't tolerate my virtue being compromised in such a manner." Draco said feigning horror and sincerity._

_"You arse. If anything, it's my honour that I should be worried about." She retorted._

_"Please." Draco scoffed. "You're more than capable of defending yourself. I pity the poor bloke who ever tries anything with you. Between you and Weaselette there are probably a thousand hexes you'll must've invented to target the male species in unmentionable areas."_

_Hermione chuckled. "You may be right."_

_"I know I am." He said as he got up and discarded his shirt and headed toward the bathroom._

_"Draco!" Hermione yelled as he proceeded to pull his pyjamas down and grab a towel._

_"What? Can't a bloke even go to bathe in peace?" He asked innocently._

_"He can. But at least he can wait to undress until he's IN the bathroom when he has company." Hermione puffed, with arms crossed across her chest, glaring at her offender._

_Draco sighed. "I have boxers on. Relax."_

_"I can see that. And trust me, I shouldn't have had to." She retorted._

_"Yup. So come on now. Make me some breakfast as an apology." Draco yelled from the bathroom._

_"Wha? Apology? Malfoy!" Hermione bellowed but her voice was drowned by the sound from the shower._

_"I'm going to poison his breakfast. Then he can be my first patient. It will be so fitting." Hermione said to herself as she made her way down to the kitchen._

_"Hmmm. smells good. Should I be worried about food poisoning?" Draco said, as he approached shirtless with wet hair dripping all over the tiles._  
><em>He nudged Hermione at the hip and she almost sloshed the milk on the platform instead of the batter.<em>

_"Draco! You arse. You seriously should worry about food poisoning." Hermione hissed as she vanished the mess away._

_She turned around to glare at him, her ladle pointing at him like a sword._

_She saw that he was shirtless and had no chest hair. His chest was smooth._

_Not that she was ogling. But appreciating was more like it._

_Muscular, but lean. Not too much. She thought._

_Hermione! Snap out of it._

_"Really Draco? What's with all the exhibitionism?" Hermione asked._

_"Huh? Oh this? I just came to ask you to pick a shirt for me." Draco said._

_"You're not wearing robes today?" Hermione asked as she eased a tasty looking piece of French toast into a plate._

_"Nah. I'll change into Quidditch robes once I get there. Thought I'd wear muggle today."_

_"You're always wearing muggle clothing these days." Hermione rolled her eyes._

_"Well yeah. Jeans are a blessing." He said matter of factly. "And the look on my father's face when he bumps into me wearing these clothes is priceless."_

_Hermione laughed. "That's really mean, you know."_

_"Oh please. You of all the people should know that mean is equivalent to almost nice in his dictionary." He said._

_She shrugged. "Okay. I'll pick you a shirt later. Eat up or it'll get cold. Coffee?"_

_"Need you even ask?"_

_She poured both of them a cup._

_"So what's in the envelope?" Draco asked after chewing his first bite. "Delicious, by the way. Way better than those cookies you tried to bake last week."_

_"Hey it's not my fault that you didn't have sugar at home and I thought that salt was powdered sugar." Hermione defended herself._

_"Yeah. Keep saying that." He said, not even looking up from his plate._

_"Fine. I won't tell you what's in the envelope then." Hermione pouted._

_"Fine. I guess I'll cancel the congratulations night out I had planned on treating you to for getting into the St. Mungo's healing programme." Draco said flippantly, swallowing his toast and taking a large gulp of his coffee._

_"What? You read my letter?"_

_"The envelope has a St. Mungo's stamp the size of a galleon on it. It doesn't take a genius to know what's in there."_

_"But how did you know it was an acceptance letter? It could very well be a rejection letter."_

_"Pfft. Please. Don't be patronising. There is no way St. Mungo's or any other place for that matter can reject you. If anything, you rejecting them is more believable." Draco said._

_"Aww. That's so sweet Draco."_

_"Of course. You're Draco Malfoy's best friend. How could they reject you?"_

_"Urrrghhh Draco! "She yelled with a knife in her hand._

_Draco put his hands up in the air, laughing and came over to hug her._

_"Congratulations." He kissed her cheek. "I knew you'd do it."_

_"Thanks." She said softly and hugged him. "I'm so excited. I can't wait to start."_

_"When do you start?"_

_"In a fortnight."_

_"So what will you do till then?"_

_"I don't know. I wish I could start tomorrow."_

_"Why don't you? "_

_"How can I just go and start whenever I please? It's a programme, Draco. It has its own schedule."_

_"I know. But you can start observing or just hanging out, checking things out. Getting the feel etc. You can spend a few hours in the hospital, that way a fortnight won't seem so long."_

_Hermione bit her lower lip. She was thinking hard._

_"You think they'll let me do that?"_

_"Hello! You're Hermione Granger. Sustainer of the Golden Trio and one-third saviour of our world. They'll probably make you head intern if you say so."_

_"Oh shut up idiot."_

_"You know it's true."_

_"No!"_

_"It is."_

_"Is not."_

_"So is."_

_"Fine." Hermione relented. "I'll go ask them."_

_"What? To make you head intern?" Draco asked._

_"Yes Draco. That's right. I'll ask them exactly that." She said rolling her eyes._

"Healer Weasley?"

"Umm uh.. Yes dear?" Hermione asked.

"I um.. Asked if the effect of this spell is completely reversible?" Katherine said.

Hermione seemed lost. She looked down into the chart she was holding to check what spell Katherine was talking about.

Had she just spaced out thinking about Draco?

Maybe it was because it had been over 10 days since his last letter.

He never took longer than 4 days to write her a new letter. But this time it had been a week and a half and still there was no sign of Paris.

Maybe he was playing her. He probably thought that if he didn't write for a long time, she would get worried and write to him.

He was still very much a Slytherin in many ways.

It would be totally expected out of him to pull something like that.

Or maybe since this new intern had reminded her of herself, she was thinking about Draco.

It was after all Draco's idea to go join St. Mungo's early.

So it was natural to think about Draco when another young intern happened to have the same idea.

"Umm yes Katherine. This spell is totally reversible. It only takes longer than expected. That's why Mr. Greeniche is still here." Hermione answered.

Okay focus Hermione. You don't want to appear confused in front of some new intern. You can worry about Draco later. Work now. She chanted to herself as she and Katherine completed their rounds.

After 2 hours, Hermione made her way towards her cabin, hoping that she would find an angry Paris perched on her table.

But her cabin was empty. No owl. No letter.

Scowling, she washed her hands and face.

She could almost imagine Draco pointing at her and laughing and saying that, now you know what it feels like to wait endlessly for a letter.

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**More flashbacks!**

**I like this Draco! Don't you?**

**What do you think is taking him so long to write back?**

**Most memories and flashbacks will be just snippets and not really leading into anything.**

**But they are an insight to the protagonists' pasts and give an idea of their lives.**

**I hope you'll are enjoying this form of the story!**

**Thank you for reading!**

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	7. Chapter 7

**A warm thank you to;**

**CinziaTwut**  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>Randomness<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>

**For your reviews!**

**.**

**.**

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**CHAPTER 7.**

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"Healer Weasley?" Katherine called out with some trepidation.

"Yes Katherine?" Hermione asked her as she levitated some lead sheets off a patient who was undergoing a treatment.

"Here is your medi-wand." Katherine offered.

"Thank you so much Katherine." Hermione smiled.

Katherine hovered around trying to say something else.

"Is there something you wanted dear?" Hermione asked, looking at her indecision from the corner of her eyes.

"Umm. This may sound odd, but there's a semi big owl laying on your desk and seemed quite irate when I went to retrieve the wand. I think he may have pecked quite a lot of wood off your desk." Katherine said.

"Oh dear. I've been here a long time. No wonder." Hermione said knowingly.

Katherine still looked confused.

Hermione seemed a bit enthused about the violent owl in her room.

Her movements had a newfound swiftness and she seemed happier.

Maybe Paris is finally here, She thought excitedly.

Since when do I express so much emotion over a letter? She frowned.

Since some people have had you addicted to their letter's like a daily soap opera, a tiny voice in her head replied.

"Okay Katherine. I'm almost done. How would you like to clean up Edward here and re-bandage him?" Hermione asked.

Katherine seemed excited. It was the first time Hermione was asking her to do something hands-on.

She had observed Hermione clean up and re-bandage Edward twice already and was confident that she would be able to do a good job.

Katherine nodded sincerely. "Sure Healer Weasley. I'll do it."

Hermione smiled encouragingly and left.

She found herself smiling more in the young intern's presence.

Katherine was a vivacious young girl who yearned to learn new things and do anything that she was assigned.

She brought innocent freshness to the mundane in the hospital and Hermione kept making similarities between her younger self and Katherine.

Even though she had told Katherine that she wouldn't be able to do much, Hermione found herself trusting the girl with work and soon Katherine had proved herself.

Hermione hurried to her cabin only to find Sinatra perched angrily on her wash basin.

She seemed slightly disappointed that Paris wasn't here but was equally excited that Ginny had written to her.

It had been almost a week since she had heard from the redhead.

She quickly tied her signature parchment to Sinatra's leg and tried placating him with a piece of toast.

He flew off immediately as if he had loads of work to do which had been kept on hold because of her.

She laughed at the owl with attitude and settled down on her chair with the newest letter.

_Dearest Mione,_

_Ginny has been extremely hormonal this week._  
><em>Her morning sickness has started and whoever named it morning sickness was clearly misinformed or didn't have a pregnant wife of his own.<em>

Hermione laughed. She was extremely pleased to hear from Harry. And it was so typical of him to assume that a male had coined the term morning sickness.

If Hermione had been face to face with him, she would have given him a piece of her mind.

Usually Ginny wrote her on behalf of him and Harry sometimes did too.

His letters were usually morose and emotionally blackmailing. And Ginny had taken onto herself that she would be the writer more often than Harry.

She didn't want to upset Hermione more than she was.

But today Harry's letter seemed to have a bouncy step to it.

Probably his paternal happiness was outweighing his sadness.

_Her nausea extends till well into the afternoons and by Merlin, if anyone even remotely crosses her, they've had it._  
><em>I've started hiding her wand.<em>  
><em>She blames her forgetfulness on her nesting period.<em>  
><em>Anyway I'm hoping that these mood swings abate soon.<em>  
><em>Because, an angry Ginny I can somewhat handle.<em>  
><em>But a crying Ginny, I'm unaware of what to do.<em>  
><em>Today she saw a dog with its little breed of puppies in Diagon Alley and she burst out crying for no reason whatsoever.<em>  
><em>I had to take her to the twins' shop to cheer her up.<em>  
><em>I wish you were here.<em>  
><em>She could really do with some feminine support.<em>  
><em>And you'd also be able to objectively deal with her madness.<em>  
><em>Come soon Hermione.<em>  
><em>How long will you stay this way?<em>  
><em>You must be missing us as much as we do.<em>  
><em>I spoke to your parents last week over the floo.<em>  
><em>They are worried about you too.<em>  
><em>I'm aware that you had visited them immediately after leaving Britain.<em>  
><em>I had expected that.<em>  
><em>But they've not heard from you since and they are worried.<em>  
><em>I don't know if you're in Australia.<em>  
><em>But I know you're overseas since Sinatra takes awfully long to come back.<em>  
><em>Don't worry.<em>  
><em>I'm not going to send a search party for you.<em>  
><em>I know that if you want to remain hidden you will.<em>  
><em>And even if we do happen to find you by some miracle, you're stubborn enough to resist.<em>  
><em>All I'm worried about is how you are.<em>  
><em>I hope you're dealing with it in a healthy way.<em>  
><em>If you would talk to us it could be a start.<em>  
><em>Maybe we could come over for a few days.<em>  
><em>I bet you'll have plenty of holidays built up.<em>

Funny how everyone assumed that she would be a workaholic and would have pent up vacation days. Like that would make a difference if she really did decide to take leave.

_Write back sometime._  
><em>Ginny sends you her love.<em>  
><em>She's asking me to tell you that her legs are swelling up and she's very upset that most of her shoes don't fit.<em>  
><em>Her Healer refuses to medicate her since it's not serious and she's annoyed with her.<em>  
><em>I hope you can knock some sense into her.<em>  
><em>Don't tell her I said that.<em>

_I love you Hermione._  
><em>Miss you.<em>

_Harry._

She smiled at his tactic to get her to write.

He was being very smart. He knew that she could never resist imparting knowledge especially if it was an area of her expertise.

Ginny was purposely making up problems. She knew her friend very well. If emotional blackmail failed, she would start acting all needy and all only to get a reaction.

She almost wanted to write back.

She felt sort of ready to talk to them. But she worried if she extended a finger in their direction, they would try to grab an arm in their enthusiasm.

And once she opened the gates, she wouldn't be able to hold back. It would be cruel to them.

She needed to be completely ready.

Just then, she heard a knock on her door.

"Yes?" Hermione called out.

"Healer Weasley? You have a floo call from JRH waiting for you. They seem to need your help." Delinda, the receptionist informed.

"I'll be there in a moment." Hermione replied.

Delinda nodded and left.

Hermione placed the letter under a paperweight and stood up.

JRH usually referred cases to JAH. Being the bigger of the two hospitals, it was more of a tertiary care centre in comparison to JRH that was a primary care hospital.

It wasn't odd to be receiving referral floos once in a while.

She was just reaching the reception where she met Katherine.

"Healer Weasley. I'm done. You can check it later if you wish." Katherine said.

"I will. I'm going to attend a referral floo now. You may accompany me if you wish."

"Sure Maam." Katherine said as they made their way to the fireplace.

"Good evening. This is Healer Weasley. How may I help you?" Hermione called out into the flames.

A blond face was present in the floo.

"Good evening Healer Weasley. I'm Healer Frank. We've heard that you're the charms damage specialist on call tonight. We have a slightly complicated case admitted here." Healer Frank explained.

Hermione nodded. "Go on."

"We admitted this patient over a week ago. He's a Quidditch player. He was hit by a charmed bludger and he fell off his broom. There was sand below, so he wasn't hurt much. A few broken bones here and there which were mended on arrival. The skull was intact but the patient was unconscious for a couple of days. He moves his body in his sleep and speaks in his sleep. After 2 days, he regained consciousness and seemed fine. No residual side effects. We kept him for observation after waking up for 24 hours as per protocol. But in the 8th hour, he lost consciousness again. He was back to his original state. All his bodily functions and memories are intact but he seems to slip in and out of consciousness. This cycle has repeated itself thrice already. And it's the same every time. We are at our wits' end. We were hoping you could help us with him."

Hermione listened carefully at what Healer Frank had been saying.

Her head was mapping out all possible scenarios as to why this could be happening.

"Who had charmed the bludger?" Hermione asked.

"Their coach. He always does it. They had a few players less so he figured that he would alternate the chasers and beaters and practice with self hitting charmed bludgers." Healer Frank answered.

"What did he charm it with?" Hermione asked.

"He claims it was the Animato Flourio, charmed to work till the snitch was caught."

"Has he used this charm before?" Hermione asked.

Healer Frank nodded. "Several times. He was shocked that it had caused such a bad blow. This has never happened before."

"Hmmm." Hermione mused. "When do you'll want to transfer him?"

"As soon as possible."

"Okay. I'm on call for tonight. So anytime you wish is good. Only please make sure that the players who were in the air and the coach accompany the patient. I'll need to question them, oh and i also want to check out the rogue bludger." Hermione said.

Healer Frank nodded and thanked Hermione.

Just as he was about to disconnect the floo when Hermione turned back.

"Healer? What's the patient's name? I'll put him on priority when he reaches." Hermione said.

The other Healer nodded. "It's a Mr. Draco Malfoy."

Hermione almost her dropped her wand and gasped.

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**Predictable, no?**

**I'd like to mention that SaruDM and randomness guessed it right!**

**I would've said this at the beginning of the chapter but didn't want to give it away ;)**

**who thinks Hermione is lightening up?**

**Will she retreat back because of Draco?**

**I hope not!**

**I hope the chapters are lighter and less depressing now.**

**Let me know your thoughts!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**.**

.

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	8. Chapter 8

**Thanking;**

**echizenochi**  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>

**For reviewing!**

**.**

**.**

.  
><strong>CHAPTER 8.<strong>

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><strong>

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Katherine clutched Hermione's wand before it could reach the floor. She took one look at the startled Healer and steadied her reflexively.

The contact from the younger witch's hand brought Hermione back to her senses and after those few seconds of shock, she quickly shifted into professional mode.

She took her wand back from Katherine and looked into the floo.

Luckily Healer Frank was still there. He seemed as bewildered as Katherine did.

"Healer, I want you to bring me the patient NOW. I'm keeping the floo active and please accompany him. Inform the coach and other players to come as soon as they can." Hermione barked.

The other Healer nodded and sensing the emergency, he left.

"Katherine, I want you to go inform the head nurse on the 3rd floor special ward to keep a room ready. I want an legilimency monitor and the sleep monitor attached before I come up to check in the patient." Hermione ordered.

Katherine nodded and hurried off.

"Delinda, ask Murphy to get the stretcher. I don't want to apparate him to his room. It may not be the best thing for his brain in this condition."

"Attention, patient coming in." A voice said from the other end of the floo.

" Received notice. Come along." Hermione answered.

The fireplace blazed bright green and Hermione stepped aside to the left.

It continued blazing for more time than it normally took for an entry or exit and after a few seconds, 3 people emerged.

Healer frank headed the group and another staff member was the last to step out.

Held carefully between them on a stretcher was Draco Malfoy.

Hermione's breath hitched in her throat and she felt her eyes prickle uncontrollably.

Of the so many ways that she imagined in which she would meet, this was a far cry from it.

She should have known that something was wrong when she stopped receiving his letters. He never took longer than 4 days to write.

Seeing one of her best friends lying in front of her, in a condition that was yet not even determined was not the reunion she had wanted.

Hermione was sure that If Draco was awake now; he would have kissed the bludger that hit him and sent him here for it allowed him to meet the reclusive Hermione Granger, even if it were not the most social event.

He looked like he was sleeping. Peaceful and restful. Without the telltale messy bed and sprawled body parts.

She had woken him up many a times in the past with the help of her voice alone. And now she was a Healer. Surely something that she must have studied somewhere would help her help him.

Murphy returned with the stretcher and they exchanged Draco's position.

Hermione mechanically thanked Healer Frank and after signing a parchment that Delinda put in front of her, she went off with Murphy as he levitated Draco to the 3rd floor, leaving the Healer from JRH with Delinda to complete paperwork and formalities of the transfer.

She silently held the sleeping Draco's hand all the way till his room.

Please be okay. Please be okay. She chanted in a fierce rhythm.

They reached his room and Hermione saw Katherine emerge from it.

"All monitors set up in addition to the normal ones. Is there anything else maam?" Katherine asked.

Hermione looked around the room to see if anything was missing. The bare white walls were clean but stern.

She could just imagine Draco waking up and complaining like a spoilt brat.

"Come on Granger! How can you work here! It wouldn't hurt to have more colour in this room. If I see the white any longer I may just have to be treated for snow blindness as well."

Shaking her own head at her silly double/single? Monologue she said, "A vase of fresh red carnations, charmed to stay alive for a few weeks would be nice."

Katherine nodded and left. If she found this request odd, she did not say so, neither did her facial expressions betray much.

Now alone with Draco in the room, Hermione looked around some more.

The room was awfully white. The red carnations would do nicely by adding a splash of colour in here. It also didn't hurt that they were his favourite flowers and contrary to many popular beliefs, red was his favourite colour.

_Shocking. She had almost laughed till tears came out of her eyes when she realised that red was his favourite colour._

_"Don't lie to me Draco. It's ok. Just because red is my favourite colour, you don't have to say it's yours too." Hermione said wiping the tears of mirth from the corners of her eyes._

_Draco gave her a steely look and said, "Why would I lie? You asked me a question that was simple enough not to warrant a lie."_

_"Oh. And may I ask which questions are the complicated ones to which I should be aware that the answers may be nothing but lies?" Hermione asked, raising her eyebrow._

_Draco gave her a long look before averting his equally steely eyes. "None. I would never lie to you." He said softly but truthfully._

_"Really?"_

_"It won't matter what I say until you decide to believe me."_

_"But how can your favourite colour be red? It's a ... a... "_

_"A Gryffindor colour?" Draco completed._

_"Well... Yeah!" Hermione conceded._

_"Well let me ask you something then."_

_Hermione nodded._

_"What is your favourite colour?"_

_"You know its red."_

_"When did you realise that red was your favourite colour?" Draco asked._

_"Oh that's easy. I was 4 and it was Christmas. And I kept asking mum to buy all kinds of decorations and wrapping paper in red. It just looked so much brighter and prettier than the other options! I had almost every article of clothing in red at one point of time." Hermione chirped._

_"Okay. So at 4 did you know anything about Hogwarts let alone the fact that you'd be a Gryffindor?" Draco asked._

_Hermione shook her head slowly. She realised what Draco was getting at._

_"And has your colour preference changed over the years?" Draco prodded._

_"No."_

_"Then how can you be so adamant about house colours influencing ones personal choice?" Draco asked._

_Hermione was silent._

_"What's weaslette's favourite colour?" Draco asked._

_"Green." She replied without missing a beat._

_Draco smirked._

_"Ohhh. I never thought it was odd before." Hermione breathed. "You know, I'd always imagined you in surroundings like green and silver. Like your bedroom, the sheets, your clothes etc."_

_"Thinking about my bedroom are we?" Draco teased._

_Hermione slapped him on his head and glared at him._

_"Okay okay. I'll tell you something though. Red is truly my favourite colour. But in front of father, it's silver. I can't bear the slytherin green so even lying to my father about it was not an option. So since even silver is a slytherin colour, I'm safe." Draco said._

_"When did red become your favourite colour?" Hermione asked._

_Draco shifted uncomfortably at this question. Because Hermione was closely observing him, she detected a hint of embarrassment? Well, she thought. This could be interesting._

_"Umm. I think I was 3." Draco said._

_Hermione waited for the story but Draco pretended to look at his parchment of charms essay which they had completed hours ago._

_"And? I'm waiting." Hermione said impatiently._

_"And what?_

_"How did you realise you liked red so much?"_

_"It's nothing Hermione. Everything doesn't need to have a story behind it."_

_"I'm sure this does. Come on Draco. Tell me. You promised you'd never lie to me."_

_"I promised I'd never lie. I didn't say I'd tell you everything." He smirked._

_Aaarrggh. Damn that Malfoy smirk. She sometimes wanted to strangle his neck till the smirked wiped itself from his face._

_"Hmm. Okay. Be that way." She said trying to be indifferent and getting up._

_"Where are you going?" He asked. He knew that not knowing something must be killing her._

_"To sign this book out. Madam Pince won't be too happy if I leave without logging out." She said._

_"Wait wait. But I thought we were spending until dinner here at the library where no one would see us." Draco pouted._

_"I don't have anything else to say to you. Why? Do you?" She asked innocently._

_Damn witch. She may be in Gryffindor but the girl knew a thing or more about manipulation._

_She waited for a few seconds expectantly and turned around to leave._

_"It's the colour of my mother's lipstick." He said silently._

_Hermione stopped short in her tracks and slowly turned around again._

_If she was shocked, she didn't show it. She didn't want him to stop talking now that he had started._

_"When I was small, she kissed me on my cheek when father was away. Malfoy's are not allowed to show affection in any manner. But the faint red mark that her lipstick made on my pale cheek was proof that she loved me for who I was. Her son. And nothing more. My achievements meant nothing more than motherly pride to her. It was the first sign of affection I had received. Since then it's always been red." He said in a small voice._

_He was looking at her icily as he shared this with her._

_Had she not known him, she would have mistaken his look for hatred but she knew it was only a defence mechanism._

_Revealing something about him that concerned feelings had always left him vulnerable. So he always masked it with hate, anger, indifference._

_Hermione was his friend. He knew that. She was the only one he had told her this to. Hell, she was the only one in front of whom his defences involuntarily slipped._

_Hermione looked at him searchingly, smiled and left her book on the table top and took the seat next to Draco, snuggling into him._

_He tensed up, not used to physical affection. She didn't leave his side though. She leaned up slightly and gently kissed his cheek._

_"I'm glad you don't like green then. Somehow reminds me of vomit." She said._

_He looked disgusted for a minute, not wanting to hear the story behind that weird statement, but smiled nevertheless._

Hermione smiled at that memory. It had taken a lot for her to believe that he liked red that much. She thought it would be nice for having him wake up to red carnations.

On second thought, she changed the colour of his sheets to a nice light and dark blue printed set.

This wasn't unprofessional. Was it?

She decided that she didn't care. She went closer to him and kissed his cheek gently like she had that day.

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**.**

**They meet.**

**Well not exactly.**

**But he's here!**

**Hope you liked this chapter!**

**Please review!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**.**

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**.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanking;**

**MaronTodai**  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>Orange-Coyote<strong>  
><strong>Randomness<strong>

**For their reviews :)**  
><strong>It's really sweet how diligently you'll are into this story! Thank you sooo much!<strong>

**.**

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**.**

**CHAPTER 9.**

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Hermione had monitored all vitals and everything seemed to be okay.

His sleep monitor showed all types REM and NREM patterns that a normal person would have while sleeping.

Only, whenever his cycle ended and a normal person would wake up, there Draco showed continuity of the cycle which essentially confirmed what Healer Frank had said.

He moved and spoke in his sleep sometimes, which thankfully ruled out the possibility of a magical coma. Hermione had enough tension on her head without worrying about Draco being in a coma.

Although his state seemed similar to a coma to a layman, in reality it was prognostically much better that his brain and bodily functions had not been compromised.

She had not tried the legilimency monitor on him yet. She wanted to speak with the coach and players before she tried it out.

Hermione was holding his hand all the while, and she felt his hand twitch and grip hers in an all too familiar manner.

Her heart soared for a moment, before she realised that he could move his body parts. This was not necessarily an improvement.

But logic left her mind soon as he gripped it tighter and it became more than just a grip. It seemed like a physical manifestation of the last day they had spent together.

Had it really been so long? 3 years since she had met him?

3 years since she had married Ron. And a year and a half since he had died of Spattergroit, ironically.

All this seemed too familiar.

Sitting in the hospital, holding the hand of a loved one, not knowing what would happen next and feeling so.. so.. Goddamn helpless.

No. Not this time. This isn't bad enough. He wakes up for 8 hours every cycle. It's a pattern. There has to be a reason. There has to be way to stop the manifestations of the charm gone wayward.

And she would find a cause. And the cure.

"Healer Weasley? A coach Ginklehertz and some Quidditch players are looking for you." Katherine said, entering the room quietly.

Hermione shut her eyes tight, steeled her resolve and drew in a deep breath.

Looking affectionately at the sleeping man in front of him, she gently pried her hand from his entwined fingers and stood up.

"I'll be right outside." She replied.

Hermione and Katherine stepped outside to see a hoard of people standing awkwardly in the waiting aisle outside the room.

A middle aged man stepped ahead and greeted Hermione. "Good evening Healer. I'm coach Ginklehertz and unfortunately the one responsible for Malfoy's condition. Healer Frank told us that he had been transferred here and you wanted to speak with us."

Hermione nodded. "Good evening. Yes, I have all the information from Healer Frank but I still think that maybe if I hear it from you'll I can come up with something that may help."

The coach nodded. "I understand. We are ready to help in any way."

"Okay. So I need you to tell me exactly what you did with that bludger that day." Hermione asked.

"Its something I use quite often when I need to alternate players and use different tactics. It's a personalised Animato Flourio. For that day, I had charmed it to circle around the pitch 8 times in random patterns before aiming itself whenever it sensed players from the opposing team. Everything was alright until Malfoy caught the snitch. Technically, the game should have ceased and the bludger should have de-animated itself. But I don't know what happened. Malfoy cheered and lost concentration and before he could react to the bludger making its way to him, he was hit and he plummeted into the sand while his broom was still airborne."

Hermione almost winced out loud. That had to hurt. Poor Draco.

She spoke to all the players and she heard varied versions of basically the same thing.

The only thing that kept bothering her was that clearly the charm had gone wrong. Why else would the bludger hit him even after the game had ended?

There had to be a reason. She asked to see the bludger.

The coach seemed uneasy and said. "We know you want to have a look at it, but you see Healer, the thing is that umm the bludger is still kind of umm animated."

Hermione's eyes went wide. "You mean to say that the charm hasn't worn off?"

The coach shuffled on his feet. "For lack of a better word, no."

Hermione was beginning to get angry now. This sounded so utterly irresponsible.

"Have you tried de-charming it?" She asked, trying to regain her patience.

"Several times. It has not worked. We had to send all our players chasing it and it took 2 of them to catch it. We've put it in a death grip chain hold lest it escapes again."

Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose and breathed deeply.

Beside her, Katherine was making copious notes of all the new information.

"Bring me the bludger." She said with a tone of finality.

The coach nodded somewhat reluctantly and left, followed by the players.

Just then a patronus that belonged to the chief arrived, which said, "Hermione, I have received a call from the minister. His wife is ill. She is being transported to the hospital this very moment. I'd like you to personally see to her and report to Me."

"Great." Hermione thought. "Just what I need."

One of the players stopped suddenly and turned around.

"Your name is Hermione?" He asked.

"Yes" she said warily.

"Unusual name isn't it?"

"I suppose so. I've never come across another Hermione."

"Me neither. But I've heard of it."

"Oh yeah?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"I know it seems like a long shot, but say, do you know Malfoy?" He asked.

"He's asleep and my patient till I cure him." She said non commitedly.

The guy shook his head. "No. Not what I meant. Do you know him? Personally?"

"Look Mr... "

"Gaucher. Matt Gaucher." He extended his hand.

She ignored it and continued. "Look Mr. Gaucher, I have another emergency to attend. So please, if you don't mind I need to leave. Thank you for coming here."

Matt Gaucher nodded and turned to leave.

He turned back again and with a last thought he said, "Malfoy keeps writing to a Hermione. Very often. More than once he's had ex-girlfriends break up with him or screaming matches with them because of this Hermione." He said, searching her face.

Hermione tried to maintain her expression as neutral as she could professionally manage.

"I just thought maybe.. Never mind. He'll wake up in a few hours. I bet he'll be amused to know your name." Matt said and left.

Hermione was numb for a while. She had never thought that Draco would discuss her with his play buddies. But Draco was never the talkative, sharing types. Except with her.

He had written about his game, his fellow players and he may have mentioned Matt as one of his good friends, she couldn't remember. But she doubted he would talk about them to anyone.

Maybe he had observed Draco writing the letters. They stayed together for so many months on the end; surely someone was bound to stumble on the fact.

But what he had said about Draco's girlfriends was odd. Why in the world would they have a problem with an almost non-existent Hermione?

And just how many ex-girlfriends was he talking about? Hermione frowned at this thought.

Not that Draco's love life should have been any of her business. Just because she was the types to wait and preferred a single time, long term, real relationship, it didn't mean that everyone was the same.

Draco on the other hand, was no Casanova but he did believe in trying out what the world had to offer. How else would he know who was right for him?

Some random, idiotic muggle survey he had read a few years ago had said that an average man goes through at least 12 relationships before finding "the one" and settling down.

Draco at that time had taken this survey way too seriously and had morosely said that he'd been with only 2, so he had at least 10 more to go.

But that was years ago.

She had to ask him where his number had reached, when he woke up.

Wait! 3 years you hide from him and everyone. You're not even sure if you'll meet him when he's up and instead of being an adult and facing things maturely, you're thinking of asking him about his love life? Hermione thought mentally.

I need some air, some sense and probably a new patient. She thought as she made her way to the room that had been prepared for the minister's wife.

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**A little background as to how Draco got himself into this mess!**

**I know you all want him to wake up soon! He will! Soon!**

**Thank you for all the reviews and comments!**

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	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you to;**

**Olimpia,**  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>Cinna16<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>

**For your reviews!**

**.**

**.**

**.**  
><strong>CHAPTER 10.<strong>

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"Mrs. Fitzgold is stable right now. I only need you to inform the nurse on this floor to check her every 45 minutes and monitor her blood lead levels every 2 hours. It's very late as it is Katherine, you can leave soon after." Hermione offered.

"Oh it's no problem Healer Weasley. It's been such a hectic night. I don't mind staying the night." Katherine piped.

"Oh no dear, that's not yet even your duty yet, you've overstayed your normal shift hours. You need not stay. It's ok." Hermione argued.

"Are you sure?" Katherine asked worriedly.

Hermione looked at her soon to be intern fondly. In the past few days, she had gotten close to her. Well, as close as Hermione could let any human get with her.

The younger witch was very much like Hermione was in her teenage days, although Katherine was intelligent, she was receptive and silent. Not talking unless absolutely necessary. She did everything that was asked of her and more.

She had noticed Hermione's reclusiveness and also her reaction to the new patient, Draco Malfoy. She had not asked anything, but had suspected that Draco was not only a patient. But she didn't want to intrude in her personal matters by asking her.

She knew that Hermione was tensed about his condition and that she was doing anything possible to revive him completely.

She wanted to help her with this; she had grown quite fond of the Healer as well.

Hermione smiled. "Absolutely. I'll tell you what. Tomorrow I'm going to check him with the legilimency monitor. You can come in early and help me with it."

Katherine beamed. "Really? I'd love to. I've never seen a legilimency monitor being used before."

"Yes. It's extremely restricted. That's probably why he was transferred here. Wizarding Sydney, Washington and Moscow are the only 3 cities that have hospitals that have legilimency monitors. And every time you use it, you need a valid reason and need to get registered before using it. Because of its extremely invasive nature, one cannot use it freely. Imagine if everyone started using them? There would be mayhem." Hermione explained.

Katherine nodded sincerely. "I can imagine. Although I don't know how it will work. Will it tell you the thoughts Mr. Malfoy had while he was in the game?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. Even better than that. Have you heard of something called the penseive?"

"Yes. I have. But I've never seen one or been inside a memory." Katherine replied.

"Okay. So the principle is the same. When you connect its cords to the patients head, the adjacent screen lights up and shows us exactly what happened as if it were recorded. Instead of being IN the memory, we can see it from outside as an audience." Hermione explained.

Katherine seemed impressed. "Wow. That's incredible."

"Indeed it is." Hermione answered. "I've sent a petition to the ministry. By tomorrow we should have the permit and we can conduct the test if required. Till then, tonight I'm going to try using all possible de-charming spells I know on that rogue bludger."

"Oh yeah. The coach sent the bludger with one of his players." Katherine said and blushed.

Hermione suspected that the player must have certainly flirted with Katherine while on his errand. Quidditch players were known Katherine was a beautiful witch.

"Hmmm." Hermione said with an abstract look towards Katherine. "I presume this certain sportsman will be visiting the hospital often?"

Katherine looked uncertain how to answer this question, so she just opted for silence, hoping that her blush would subside.

"Okay Healer Weasley. I'll see you early tomorrow morning. Good night." Katherine mumbled before leaving.

Hermione laughed at her junior's discomfort. The sound of her own laughter seemed so foreign to her. She could probably count on her fingers the number of times she had openly laughed since she had shifted here.

Draco's letters had lightened her mood considerably. But she was still sceptical about meeting him face to face. She didn't know if she was ready.

Ready or not, she was his Healer now. So she had to see him. There were no two ways about it. The petition had her name as attending Healer. And the law demanded that she follow him up till he was cured or dead. Whichever was sooner. Of course he wouldn't die in his condition. So she had to be in touch with him till he got better.

Sighing, she decided she would bother about it when he woke up. There were at least some 15 more hours of sleep left.

She made her way towards her cabin where the bludger was kept.

A hot cup of tea first and then she would get cracking on the offensive bludger.

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**.**

Surprisingly, the case of the animated bludger frustrated Hermione enough to fall asleep for a bit.

She awoke quite fresh even after only 4 hours of sleep. She had spent the better part of the night trying all possible spells and charms on the bludger. None worked. And Draco continued his sleep patterns happily.

He would wake in 7 hours and Hermione needed to use the legilimency monitor on him before that. In fact, the game had lasted for an hour and ten minutes, thus she needed to check his memory of the game in less than 5 hours.

Just as she brushed her teeth and washed her face, Katherine came in excitedly with a parchment in hand.

"Healer Weasley! The permit has arrived. We can do the test now."

"Oh good. I was just thinking that we need to buck up before he wakes up." Hermione replied.

Hermione and Katherine made their way towards Draco's room and Katherine promptly went about connecting the monitor to Draco.

Hermione checked his other vitals and after ensuring that he was fine and that all the connections were in order, she set the date and time of the Quidditch match in question on the monitor and waited for it to retrieve the sleeping patient's memories.

She and Katherine settled on the chairs in front of the monitor.

"Okay fellas. Good luck. Remember to switch after 3 goals. Malfoy and Peters stay put. Donovan, keep a lookout for the goals. Go on." The coach yelled.

The team followed each other out and one by one they mounted on their beautiful speedshifter brooms into the airfield.

The players settled themselves into their respective positions. Hermione was not much well versed with the rules, but watching Harry and Ron's every match had given her enough knowledge about the game.

She could make out that there was one beater and one chaser less, so that's why the shuffling was taking place.

She happened to see the gold fluttering for a fraction of a second and could notice Draco's eyes linger at the snitch too, but just as they saw it; it was off in the air and invisible again.

Then she noticed the bludger, it was roaming about on its own and it swerved towards one of the players on its own accord. He ducked and the bludger took off again.

The game continued for a bit and the bludger came dangerously close to Draco once, but a chaser drove it away thankfully.

A few circles around the pitch and Draco had spotted the snitch. The seeker of the opposing team had spotted Draco spot it and he kept close to him in hope of seeing it himself.

And then he saw it.

But not before Draco.

Draco dived towards the left and for a second the other seeker looked confused but swerved a slight left to corner Draco but this slight stalling cost him and Draco took this advantage to swerve a sharp right and go straight in the line of the snitch.

He sped forward maniacally with his arm outstretched to its limit.

The other seeker was a foot away, trying to gain momentum, but Draco came awfully close and was a hairs breadth away from the wings of the snitch.

Hermione and Katherine were almost glued to the screen, having gotten up from the chairs and actually in front of the screen by now.

Draco's palm curled around the snitch and he pumped both his fists in the air as a sign of victory. His team mates were hoarse from cheering. But suddenly there was silence.

The charmed bludger was making its way toward Draco with alarming speed.

Before Draco could even finish smiling his wide smile of victory, he had been hit and his body plummeted down with his broom hanging in its place, as it was.

The screen went blank immediately because Draco must have lost consciousness on impact.

But neither the blow nor the blanking of the screen shocked Hermione and Katherine. They were standing in front of the screen, mouths wide open, and eyes wide in disbelief.

"Did you?" Katherine started.

"I did. But how is it possible?" Hermione said.

"I can't believe it." Katherine breathed.

"Now I know why no one knew what happened. _We_ barely managed to make out." Hermione said.

Katherine nodded. "Mr. Malfoy is still in this state because he _thought_ he caught the snitch. He almost did. But he didn't feel or see it slip again when he pumped his fist."

Hermione nodded excitedly. "Exactly. _The game is not over yet_."

**.**

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**There!**

**She's found the reason!**

**Hope you enjoyed the little mystery!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	11. Chapter 11

**A very warm thank you to;**

**SaruDM**  
><strong>Olimpia<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>witchnimbus23<strong>

**For their feedback on the last chapter.**

**I experienced something while writing this chapter which I'm sure every writer has at some point or the other.**

**I was almost through writing this chapter when my phone battery died on me. I type on my phone and seeing the lights go off midst type, I found myself yelling NOOOOO in my own head!**

**Yepp! In the moment, I had not saved what I'd written and when I switched on my phone again, hoping against hope that it had automatically saved itself somehow. But no, I lost the chapter.**

**So here's another attempt at chapter 11. I was kinda frustrated at my stupidity so this chapter took longer than usual.**

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><strong>CHAPTER 11.<strong>

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Hermione and Katherine saw the memory of the match once again to make sure what they had witnessed.

Sure enough, the verdict was the same.

Draco had palmed the snitched loosely and whilst doing that, he circled the fluttering wings of the golden snitch. But in the excitement, he hadn't grasped it properly and the snitch slipped through his fingers without him realising.

He was so busy by his win that he failed to notice it. Since there was no player as high as him, no one noticed it either.

"This has got to be a one of its kind game. I've never seen a game where the snitch has been assumed to be caught." Katherine admitted.

"Me neither." Hermione said.

"I never imagined coming across such a case." Katherine said.

"I've come across weird cases, well that's a given, considering I'm in the spell and charms damage ward, but you're right, this is by far the weirdest." Hermione agreed.

"So what are we going to do now? Mr. Malfoy is going to be up in about 2 hours. We will have to tell him about the game." Katherine said.

Hermione nodded. "Yeah, we have to tell him. But now that we've figured out that the game wasn't over, we still are yet to figure out a cure. I spent most of last night trying to search for a cure. But nothing is working on the blasted bludger."

"Maybe if we destroyed the bludger?" Katherine offered.

Hermione shook her head. "No. That will only destroy the material part of the bludger. The charm has been cast. Nothing can reverse it unless it is removed."

"Katherine? What do we know about charmed bludger as of now?" Hermione asked, thinking about the answer in her own head.

She thought that maybe discussing it with Katherine would help them both with ideas.

"Charmed with Animato Flourio to take 8 rounds of the pitch, random hits towards players. Oh maam, that's why Mr. Malfoy wakes up for only 8 hours in 2 and a half days. That's probably the equivalent of 8 rounds on the pitch before the bludger hit him and he lost consciousness." Katherine said.

"You're right. It's probably the real-time manifestation of the charm since the game isn't over." Hermione said.

Katherine and Hermione immediately looked at each other as the realisation dawned on them.

"The coach said that the bludger was charmed with a pattern until the game ended. That means until the snitch was caught." Katherine said.

"But the snitch wasn't caught and that means that the game hasn't ended, which means that the bludger is still under the influence of the charm." Hermione said.

"And the only way to remove the charm is..."

"To finish the game." Hermione finished off.

"You mean Mr. Malfoy has to continue playing the game once he wakes up?" Katherine asked.

Hermione nodded. "Not only that, they must finish the game while he's conscious. We can't have him slip again. And you know how long quidditch matches can last."

"But we have almost 8 hours. Let's hope they finish the match within the time frame." Katherine said.

"Draco has been fed via potions during his unconsciousness. So it will be as good as waking up after a long sleep." Hermione said.

"So is it okay for him to play after he's up?"

"Yeah. His vitals are all okay. After he wakes up he should probably drink something with glucose and start on the game." Hermione said.

Just then Delinda entered the room and told them that the coach had arrived.

Hermione had called him to inform him about the game and the solution.

He was shocked at the revelation but glad that she had been able to find a cure. Eagerly, he left to make arrangements for continuing the game.

He handed Hermione a parchment with the address of the quidditch pitch where she was supposed to bring Draco.

"We need to send an authorisation request to the health ministry. Since this is a most unusual condition with an even more unorthodox cure, we need permission from them to take a patient out of the hospital." Hermione exclaimed.

So they sat at the reception, filling up paperwork to be sent to the health ministry.

Hermione looked like she was uneasy and wanted to talk to Katherine about something. But every time she started saying something she thought against it.

Katherine sensed that Hermione wanted to tell her something but was hesitating about it. Maybe she would tell her later.

They completed the paperwork and Delinda sent it with an urgent stamp to the ministry. Now they had to wait for the approval.

"I'll send the memo receipt up to you as soon as it comes, Healer Weasley." Delinda said.

"Okay. If you don't get anything in 30 minutes, send someone personally. We are pressed for time." Hermione said.

Hermione and Katherine went up to her cabin to wait for the permission letter.

Hermione made some tea and sandwiches for them while they waited.

Katherine sensed that Hermione had brought her here to tell her what she had been hesitating about in the reception.

"Katherine?" Hermione finally asked." Can you please do me a favour?"

"Sure Healer Weasley." Katherine replied.

"Look, its okay if you want to refuse. I know I'm not following protocol by asking you to do this, but don't worry. You'll be under vicarious responsibility, so in case there is a problem, I'll handle it. You don't have to worry about it. You're officially not an intern yet but you will be in a few days so I can trust you." Hermione rambled.

Katherine stared at her mentor. In the past weeks if she had learned anything, it was that Hermione Weasley always followed protocol. She was a stickler for rules and she did everything the right way.

So this request that apparently defied protocol was strange. Katherine wondered what it was that Hermione wanted from her.

"What is it Healer Weasley? I'm sure since you are asking it from me; it can't be all that bad." Katherine said.

"Umm. It's not. It's just that you've been with me on this case since the beginning. So you're like second in command. You would be actually, if you were officially under me. But since you're not, this may be problematic." Hermione said.

"Thing is, I'd like you to be Draco's Healer when he wakes up. I want you to accompany him to the game and back. I'll give you exact instructions if anything goes wrong of course. I'll even be there, but I don't want anyone to know I'm there. I hope you understand Katherine?" Hermione pleaded.

Katherine had realised that Hermione had known Draco from the beginning. That was certain. But she clearly didn't want him to know that she was here. There must be a big reason, considering Hermione Weasley never backed out from her duties.

Katherine sensed urgency in the Healer's voice. "Sure maam. If you think I'm up to it, I would love to help you."

Hermione beamed at the younger witch. She had agreed to Hermione's request without asking for any explanation.

Hermione was extremely grateful to her.

she had found a confidante in her and maybe in time she would be able to share more with her.

"But Healer Weasley, you will have to meet him some time during his discharge." Katherine said.

"I know." Hermione sighed. "I can't run for long. But I need to stay away for now."

Katherine didn't press for more.

Hermione knew that she would have to reveal herself to Draco soon.

But now was not the time. Now he had a game to finish.

And he didn't need any distractions.

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**I don't know if this version is better or my original one that got lost.**

**We'll never know! But I'm starting to save every para I write now ;-)**

**Hope you enjoyed it!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you to;**

**CinziaTwut**  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>

**For their reviews.**

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><strong>CHAPTER 12.<strong>

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Hermione was so torn. Never had she felt the need to be and not to be in the same place so desperately.

Draco was finally going to wake up and she would have met him after 3 long years had she not been a coward and decided to avoid him.

A familiar sense of excitement was starting to grip her as the hands of the clock neared his waking time.

The last time she had met Draco, she had wanted to manually hold the hands of the clock and stop time. She knew he had to leave. But she wasn't ready to let her best friend go.

And now that he was here, she felt a similar need to stop time. She was content with the idea of him being in front of her, unconscious.

But she knew she was being ridiculous and extremely selfish. She couldn't keep him hostage just because she wanted to.

She also wanted him to be awake and healthy. She was sure that he was going to be livid once he found out what happened to him.

Either he was going to blast the coach's head off for charming the bludger or was going to relentlessly blame himself for being so presumptuous about winning. He tended to be extremely hard on himself when it came to things he cared about.

And to top it off, when he would finally come to know that Hermione was right here there was no telling what his unpredictable mind would be up to.

She didn't want to shock him with surprise and happiness. She knew his mind would suddenly get diverted by her presence and he would leave everything to corner her and bombard her with questions.

And he couldn't afford that right now. Every moment of his waking time was important.

"Healer Weasley?" Katherine came in with a parchment.

"Yes Katherine? And you know I've asked you to call me Hermione. You don't start working here officially till next week. Even then you can call me by my name." Hermione said.

"Umm yes Healer, I mean Hermione. It's just strange you know calling you by your name." Katherine said.

"It won't be if you make a habit of it." Hermione smiled.

"I'll try. But look what Delinda sent with me. It's the permission letter. And the ministry wants a written copy of Mr. Malfoy's case papers once the cure works and he has been discharged."

Hermione nodded.

"Good. Now you know you're going to be filling in for me. You know the drill. Just make sure not to mention my name." Hermione said.

"Yup Healer.. Hermione. I know, don't worry. It'll be fine." Katherine assured her.  
>"I'll be at the game. And I'll meet you later at my cabin once you're back." Hermione said.<p>

"Okay. I'll be fine. So will Mr. Malfoy." Katherine said touching Hermione's arm in a friendly manner.

"Good. Go ahead. We don't want our patient to wake up all alone now." Hermione said.

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**.**

Katherine had been sitting in Draco's room for about 10 minutes, writing his case report when he woke up.

"Umhmmm." Draco mumbled, rubbing his eyes and trying to get up, cracking his back noisily as he did so.

Katherine hurriedly put away her files and got up from her chair.

She filled a goblet with water and handed it to a confused Draco.

"Drink it. You'll feel better. But take small sips." Katherine instructed.

He narrowed his eyes to slits to prevent excess light from entering his eyes, shielding them with his palm he took the goblet with his other hand and took a tentative sip.

Katherine waved her wand to close the curtains in his room and immediately it was darker.

"Thank you...miss..." Draco's parched and sleepy voice said.

"Katherine. I'm your Healer. Don't worry about it Mr. Malfoy. How are you feeling?"

"Stiff."

"That's a given. But other than that anything else? Any aches or pains?" Katherine asked.

"No. Where am I?"

"You are at Jades Arden hospital. It's a sister hospital of the one you were originally brought to."

"Oh yeah. I remember." He said, sitting up better and emptying his goblet of water."Then why was I shifted?"

"This is a bigger institution. The staff there were unable to diagnose your... er... condition. So you were shifted here."

"So I was unconscious again? I don't remember coming here." Draco asked.

Katherine nodded. "You were awake for 8 hours before you lost consciousness again."

And she went about explaining everything about his condition and updating him about the latest developments.

Draco let out a slow whistle and ran his hands through his now shaggy blond hair.

"I didn't win? I missed the snitch?" He asked incredously.

Katherine laughed good naturedly. "I just tell you that you've been hit by a charmed bludger and you're in a vicious cycle of sleep and wake and the only way you can escape it is by completing the game, and all you can comprehend is that you didn't win the game?"

Draco shrugged.

"I get it. Men and their quidditch and need to win." Katherine said knowingly.

"So I'm going to be up for only 8 hours now unless the game is completed?"

"Actually 7 and three-quarters of an hour. We need to get a move on. But I need to make sure you're physically okay to take on the stress of the game."

"Pfft. Stress? Quidditch is a stress buster for me."

"I understand. But I'm going to check your vitals now and you have to walk about for 15 minutes to loosen your muscles. I'll check your vitals again after that and we'll feed you some liquid glucose to keep up your strength."

"Okay. But can I have another glass of water please before I begin?"

"Sure. Door to the bathroom is to your left."

Draco looked left and saw a door but what caught his attention more were the red carnations in a sleek vase at the mantel.

"I had visitors?" He asked, gesturing towards the flowers.

"Umm." Katherine tried to think fast. Surely Hermione wouldn't want him to know that she was responsible for the flowers. "No. I mean yes, you had visitors, your coach and fellow team mates came by but the flowers are courtesy of the hospital."

"How nice. And this unusual choice of bedding too?"

Katherine nodded. "Don't want our patients to feel like they are in a hospital. White tends to do that."

"How right you are kind Healer of mine. Please thank whoever is responsible for the flowers. Co-incidentally, they are my favourite."

Of course they are, Katherine thought. "Sure I will."

Draco headed towards the bathroom and shut the door.

Katherine heaved a sigh of relief and sank into her chair heavily. Who knew acting to be Draco's Healer and hiding Hermione's presence would be so pressurizing?

In less than 5 minutes, Draco returned visibly fresher and hair slightly wet and slicked back.

Now that he was moving with more ease and had rolled up the sleeves of his hospital robes, Katherine could appreciate his toned forearms.

His blue, thick veins stood out in contrast to his slightly pale skin.

He must have been very pale before, Katherine thought. He had a distinct tan that came from visiting tropical places, but she could make out that underneath all that he was extremely fair.

His movements were swift and agile now that he was awake and his eyes shone a deep grey.

Katherine realized that Draco Malfoy was an extremely good looking man and she suddenly wondered what exactly was his relationship with her senior.

"Okay. Let's hurry. We need to be at the pitch in half an hour."

Draco completed all the tests and had his energy drink and was ready to leave soon.

Katherine signed out and she apparated with him to the field.

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**.**

The coach saw Draco first and he lunged onto him, "Malfoy! So good to see you awake. You better catch the snitch this time, mate. Can't have you falling asleep again."

Draco laughed as he was greeted by his team mates with pats on the back.

"Okay, warm up everybody. And I'll whistle when the game is to start. Off you'll go." The coach yelled.

Katherine handed Draco a flask of glucose water with electrolytes again, and he took a few sips before heading.

"Good luck Mr. Malfoy." Katherine called out.

Draco offered her a dazzling smile and ran to catch up.

Katherine looked around trying to find herself a good place to sit from where she would have a decent view, she spotted many stands in the viewing area but all were unoccupied.

She climbed up a few benches and found a place to sit.

She wondered where Hermione was. She had said she would be at the game.

But obviously she would be well hidden.

She hoped that the game would get over in 6 hours. Most games did, but there was no saying how long a game would last.

She knew that the record for the longest game played was 4 days and 13 hours. But that was a complete rarity.

Mostly games finished in a record 2-3 hours. She hoped this was one of those games.

She saw the players on the field, filing out and running rounds. She hoped that Draco would remember to keep sipping his drink in between.

After a few minutes of warm up, the players took off on their brooms and the coach released the balls.

The game was similar to the one they had seen in Draco's memory and Katherine found herself looking for the handsome player who had befriended her at the hospital.

She saw him as a blur and wasn't sure whether he had noticed her or not.

Either way, she shifted focus to look out for Draco. She had to be vigilant, in case he needed medical attention.

He was circling the field most of the time, except once when the other seeker had sighted the snitch and zoomed in its pursuit and Malfoy had blindly followed.

Turned out that he lost sight of the snitch and both seekers resumed their positions, keeping a lookout.

The chasers were doing a good job of protecting the players from the bludger, especially after the untoward accident, they were being doubly cautious.

There were a few cheers whenever any team scored, by now Draco's team was behind by 2 goals but in the end it would all depend on who would catch the snitch.

Katherine didn't really care who caught the snitch as long as someone did this time. She only wanted the game to be done but she doubted that Draco would take to losing the game nicely.

He was anyways not happy about his previous blunder. He could be seen scouring for the gold almost viciously.

It was just less than 2 hours since the game had started and the snitch had only been sighted once.

The teams continued to pile on the goals but the seekers were still looking for the clincher.

Suddenly, Katherine noticed the elusive snitch and instantly her eyes darted to Draco's form. Sure enough he and the other seeker had noticed it and both made a mad dash in its direction.

Katherine had stood up now, all her files and Draco's medical bag strewn aside.

Never had she held her breath so desperately for a game. Not even when she was in school and her own house was playing.

She was bending far and trying to catch all movements possible.

Without tearing her gaze away from the game, she fiddled in her purse for a set of omnioculars and quickly she put them in front of her eyes.

Her view improved greatly, she straightened her back but continued to stand in anticipation while watching the seekers chase the snitch.

Draco and the other guy were neck to neck, both with outstretched hands. But Katherine noticed that the other seeker was concentrating on pushing forward with all his might. He was stiff backed and almost prone, parallel to the length of his broom.

She remembered that this position allowed maximum speed in one direction. But at the cost of agility. It was a valuable speed booster but it was very difficult to change course suddenly if one was in this position.

Draco on the other hand, was slightly upright, slowing him just a little and causing him to be a mere few inches behind.

But in the end, Draco's perception won because the temperamental snitch decided to swerve 90 degrees towards the right and then another 90 degrees again resulting in a total 180 which caught Draco unguarded but he was ready and he swiftly shifted his broom to fly behind the truant snitch.

Even though Draco lost precious seconds turning about, it was less than what the other seeker forfeited. His stiff position caused him the loss of those deciding moments which resulted in Draco being in lead in pursuit of the snitch.

The other seeker sensing a losing battle resumed his earlier position to gain some distance but even that didn't help.

He was probably only a foot behind Draco when the latter leapt up from his broom dangerously and tried palming the snitch.

He felt the cool flutter of it against his palm but learning his lesson from earlier he concentrated on the feel of it and grasped it tighter till he could almost feel it painfully.

Clutching it with his life, he yelled in victory and descended on his broom keeping a lookout for the bludger.

By the time he touched ground, his team mates were already there and thumping his back.

He proudly handed the snitch back to the coach who had happily pointed out that the bludger was resting peacefully in its place, completely de-animated.

Draco looked up at the stands to see Katherine standing and he was sure she was smiling. He waved at her and she waved back.

**.**

On one of the bleachers exactly behind him, in an obscure stand that was shut off for repairs, stood Hermione who had witnessed the whole game.

She had no doubt that he would get the snitch.

He sometimes tended to be complacent towards some things which would lead to incidents like his presumptions in catching the snitch.

But once he focused and made up his mind, nothing could stop him from pursuing what he wanted.

He needed only one thing for that, complete and utter conviction in his beliefs.

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**So Draco has officially completed the game.**

**He's cured!**

**And he still thinks that Katherine is his Healer.**

**What will happen when he finds out the truth?**

**How will he react?**

**Or will Hermione find some other loophole to avoid him altogether?**

**What do you'll think? Should they meet in the next chapter or not yet?**

**Let me know!**

**Hope you enjoyed the match!**

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	13. Chapter 13

**A hearty Thank you to;**

**MaronTodai**  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>Mihika<strong>  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr<strong>  
><strong>kmem<strong>

**For their reviews!**

**.**

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><strong>CHAPTER 13.<strong>

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"But why?" Draco whined.

"Because..." Katherine started.

"Really you're starting a sentence with because?" Draco asked, trying to change the subject remembering the time when Hermione would constantly correct him about it.

"You asked why. It warrants a because." Katherine said sighing in resignation.

And he's supposed to be at least 6 years older than you. Katherine thought, wondering how chronological age could be very deceiving.

"Very colloquial. No matter." Draco said being the bigger person.

"Will you please come with me now?" Katherine tried again.

"Are you asking me out? I thought there are rules against Healer-patient relations." Draco said, arching his eyebrows and smirking.

I think he was better unconscious. Katherine thought, summoning all her patience. Maybe Healer Weasley knew how annoying he would be when he's awake and that's why she stuck you with him. No. Doubtful. But it would be tempting.

"I am asking you to return with me to the hospital. In which alternate universe is that considered a date?" Katherine replied.

"I'm fine. We finished the game didn't we? So I'm back to normal. Why do I need to go back now? Look Healer Katherine, I really have important work to tend to. And all this sleeping was such a waste of time." Draco said.

"I understand Mr. Malfoy. But I was authorized only to bring you here, supervise the game and take you back to the hospital. Your treatment is still left. There are still 2 hours left and we need to keep you under observation for any complications. Plus there's the paperwork and discharge." Katherine said.  
>Draco looked bored.<p>

"Look I know you want to get on with your life, but this is necessary. If you come with me now then we can discharge you by tonight and you can also make it back to your country with your team mates in time." Katherine said.

"Fine. Has anyone told you that you're annoyingly patient and persuasive?" Draco asked.

"Few people have." Katherine replied smugly. "But not when they've met me for the first time."

Draco chuckled. "Hmmm. Where are my manners? I should have at least waited for my second meeting with you. But actually you remind me of someone. She's equally annoying when she wants to be. Maybe the familiarity has caused me to be obnoxious."

"Honest too." Katherine said rolling her eyes.

"One of my many qualities and virtues." Draco said. "Ok you can leave my arm now. I'm not apparating away anywhere without you."

Katherine flustered and left his arm. But then she caught it again. "I'm only holding it because I need to apparate you side along." She huffed.

Draco's laughter was cut short by the characteristic churning that accompanied apparition.

Before he could blink, they were in the lobby of the hospital.

"Some warning would have been nice." Draco said.

"I could say the same." Katherine mumbled, thinking that some warning from Hermione about Draco's stubbornness would have been nice.

They signed the entry sheet at the reception and Katherine told Delinda that she would register the whole case file soon after checking Draco again.

They reached Draco's room and Katherine motioned him to take his position on the bed.

"Since you've been on potions and liquids for the past week, we can't allow you to take solids so soon. So we'll gradually ease into the transition, okay?"

Draco nodded.

"The hospital pantry will send some juice and soup up shortly. Please finish it. I need you to lie down on this bed now while I connect you to the various monitors to evaluate you in the wakeful state. This won't take long." Katherine explained.

"Wow. I didn't know I was so serious." Draco whistled.

"You aren't now. And frankly you weren't then either. All your bodily functions were perfect. It only seemed that you were sleeping an awful lot, waking for 8 hours and sleeping again. And we just couldn't figure out the reason. Thus the use of every possible machine possible." Katherine explained.

"And that's why you used the legilimency thing?" Draco asked.

Katherine nodded.

Draco didn't know whether he should be angered at the invasion of his mind without his permission or be thankful that such things existed and were used on him.

They probably would never have figured out the obscure reason otherwise.

"Mr. Malfoy I know you weren't awake for us to take formal permission, but given the circumstances, we deemed it necessary to conduct the test. We took consent from the coach and your teams' medical head, not to mention the ministry was briefed and it authorised us for the use of legilimency." Katherine said.

"I know. I mean I'm not suing or anything. It's just that I've always walled my thoughts against occlumency. So it's a bit strange. I hope that professional conduct was upheld and nothing other than the match was probed?" Draco asked.

"I assure you. In fact I think you can watch the copy of the memory we took. We put in exact timings of the match. So thus only whatever happened to you within that time frame was visible for us to see. Anything before or after cannot be viewed."

Draco was relieved. "Can I watch the memory? I'm curious as to how I made such a stupid mistake."

Katherine nodded. "You're clear as of now. Everything good. Only one hour to go to pass the test. You can watch the match. I'll set up the screen."

So Draco propped himself on the pillows and got ready to watch his memory.

Katherine fed him a potion and reminded him to complete the liquid meal when it came.

Draco nodded. "Oh and Healer Katherine? May I please summon my owl? I need to write an urgent letter."

"Sure. Go ahead." Katherine answered.

She then excused herself and said that she would return within the hour.

**.**

**.**

"Phew!" Katherine said as she entered Hermione's cabin.

"Hard work, internship." Hermione joked.

"Oh trust me. I'd do night shifts every other day and I'd still not be as tired as I am now." Katherine said.

"I take it that you met Draco Malfoy in his element then." Hermione laughed.

"I also suspected that is why you wanted to send me instead of going yourself. I don't blame you." Katherine joked. "The trials and tribulations of being a lowly intern."

Hermione chuckled at the soon to be interns assumption. It couldn't have been more off the mark.

"At least you got to play Healer for half a day." Hermione said.

"Oh don't ask. Every time he called me 'Healer Katherine' it was so strange. I kept wanting to correct him and tell him that I still have 2 years before I earn that title."

"True. But he'll know soon." Hermione said quietly but with some hesitation.

"You're going to meet him?"

"I have to, no? I have no choice. I'm not talking about hospital rules only." Hermione said.

Katherine had no idea what she meant by that but she knew there was an old connection between the two which probably had been tested. Since Draco didn't know that Hermione worked here, Katherine was willing to bet that it was due to Hermione that he had no idea.

"Well, he's settled now. Watching his memory. He'll have lunch soon and I have to go check him before the hour is up. Everything is fine by the way." Katherine summarised.

Hermione nodded.

"You saw the match didn't you?" Katherine asked.

"Yeah. I did."

"I tried looking for you."

"I hid well." Hermione said, emoting more from that statement than it actually seemed.

Katherine stayed silent, not sure how to respond to that. It wasn't that she wasn't curious. She really was. She was itching to know details.

But this was Healer Weasley. Even though she had been told to call her Hermione, she was still her senior, her mentor in the end.

She couldn't sit and gossip with her as though they were a couple of 18 year olds.

But if Hermione ever needed someone, Katherine knew that the Healer was often lonely, she would be there.

"Katherine? Thank you." Hermione whispered.

Katherine didn't want to insult her own and Hermione's intelligence by asking 'for what?' So she stayed silent and gave her an encouraging smile.

"I don't have friends here. I don't socialise. But when I see you, it's like talking to myself when I was younger."

"Hmm. I was told today by someone that I reminded them of somebody." Katherine said cheekily.

Hermione laughed. "Very smart. But it's true. I'm not surprised Draco said that."

"But I must say one thing. You're handling your questions and curiosity quite well. I would've probably hexed someone and used veritaserum in their tea till they answered all my questions." Hermione said.  
>Katherine laughed out loud. "Hmmm. Now that you've admitted to it, I don't see any harm in telling you that I came close to that. But something about using veritaserum on your senior wouldn't look good on my resume."<p>

Both women laughed in the company they shared with each other.

Just then, a large stately owl pecked at Hermione's window and she turned to see Paris.

Hermione was startled and surprised but she opened the window nevertheless and took the letter.

Normally if she had known that Draco was in Australia, she would have taken her sweet own time to reply and send off the owl, because if the reply reached Draco so soon he would be suspicious that Hermione was close by.

But she anyways planned on visiting him. He would know soon enough. Didn't matter if he mulled over as to why the letter reached him almost instantaneously.

But she was so engrossed in the letter that she forgot the waiting owl and Katherine in her office and ripped it open and started reading immediately.

It gave an account of all the happenings in the past few days and also he taunted her asking her if she was worried that he hadn't contacted her in so long. He wrote that when he woke up, he had ignorantly expected worried notes sent by her. But who was he kidding? Why would she write back? She probably didn't care.

Hermione didn't know whether to feel hurt at the harsh words or feel slightly happy that he was finally lashing out.

His constant denial at her totally indifferent behaviour had worried her and comforted her at the same time.

But there was something in this letter's taunt that displayed that he hadn't given up yet. He was not above using guilt as a mechanism to get her to write back.

Maybe it was time. She could easily pull a few strings and somehow change patients, thereby losing his responsibility.

Draco would go back and never know that she had seen him and treated him.

But if she didn't show herself today, then the day she actually would, there would be a huge hole in their friendship that even his detached absence of expectations and unconditional faith would not be able to fill.

And she had lost enough in life to know that she didn't need to grieve another loss.

The letter only solidified her earlier decisions and crossed out the feelings of running away from him.

Clutching the letter tightly, she hastily donned her Healer robes and said, "I must go see my patient. I'll see you later Katherine."

Before the stunned junior could even register anything, Hermione had left, leaving her alone in the room with an impatient looking owl.

She didn't even bother knocking before she entered his room.

"I didn't reply because unconscious people _can't_ read. And I was worried but not too much because _I_ was healing you. I knew you would get better. And don't you dare ever say again that I don't care, Draco Malfoy. So help me because I may not show it but you know it." Hermione yelled, clutching at her letter tightly in her raised arm.

Draco meanwhile stayed motionless as if he had been petrified.

After a few seconds he said breathily, "that has got to be the most unexpected form of reply I have ever received to a letter sent by owl. Beats the empty letters."

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**He got her to meet him in his own way without even realising it!**

**And thank you all again for your reviews and sentiments!**

**I'm aware you'll were eagerly awaiting their face to face and here it is!**

**How do you thing Draco will react to his Healer now?**

**What will Hermione do now that Draco knows where she is?**

**He will surely be difficult to get rid of.**

**But does she really want to get rid of him?**

**I hope you'll like this chapter!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you to;**

**CinziaTwut**  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr<strong>  
><strong>witchnimbus23<strong>

**For their reviews!**

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**CHAPTER 14.**

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"All this while you have the audacity to ignore my letters and now you come barging in and yell your reply out like a freaking banshee? Are you insane?" Draco hollered, getting up quickly on his feet.

"I didn't ignore your letters you ignorant fool. In case you forgot to notice I always sent one back with Paris." She countered back in an equally high decibel.

"Oh and how eloquent they were. Full of regaling tales. I was overwhelmed. "He replied caustically.

"I had nothing to write. Nothing to say. Is that so difficult for you to comprehend?" She fought back, not backing down in the least.

Both had kept taking a step ahead towards each other with each comeback.  
>They were only 2 steps away from each other now.<p>

"I asked questions. So many of them. Since when did you back down from answering? You would almost dislocate your arm while raising it crazily in school when a question was asked. And mine weren't even that difficult." He snarled.

She closed the last step between them and they were so close by now, not even enough for another person to fit through.  
>"I ... " Draco cut her off abruptly, not even bothering to listen to her pitiful excuse.<p>

He had engulfed her in a bone crushing bear hug and she felt the air leave her lungs in impact with the pressure.

She found it difficult to breathe but she didn't care. She attacked him and hugged him back with equal ferocity.

She was crushed against his solid pectorals and she could feel her salty tears create a wet spot on his hospital shirt.

Draco had loosened his grip by now and he was rubbing her back soothingly, alternating patting it.

She was sobbing wordlessly and neither said anything. After a few minutes, she drew in a long calming breath and looked up to face him.

He melted in the brown that her eyes held and fiercely kissed her forehead multiple times and refused to let her go.

"I can't believe it's really you. Is it really you?" He mumbled, contradicting himself.

"It's really me." She said.

Then she smacked him hard on his chest and he let out a confused cry of pain.

"You complete and utter overconfident idiot! How could you go and get yourself hurt by that stupid bludger? And you call yourself a seeker? Couldn't even catch one stupid snitch. What if something worse had happened to you?"

He grinned like an idiot. "If a crazed bludger hit is what it takes to meet you then I would do it all over again, Hermione."  
>"Arse! Overconfident fool! Prat of the first order." She seethed.<p>

"And what if I hadn't been able to save you? What if I'd have lost you too?" Hermione asked enraged.

"Then your bi-weekly entertainment in the form of my letters would come to a stop. You probably would have to resort to buying that box with moving figures then." Draco retorted.

"Shut up or I'll leave." She warned.

"Like hell you will. I've finally found you. There's no way I'm letting you out of my sight. You should consider yourself lucky if I let you go to the bathroom alone." Draco said.

"Draco... Don't be dramatic. And the box is called a television." She said.

He smiled.

She was there. The Hermione he had left years ago was still there inside somewhere.

"You know I have so much more reason to be raving pissed at you than you at me right now?" He said.

"You're right." She sighed. "So are we cool?"

"Cool? What are you 15? This isn't bartering off our anger Hermione. You vanish off the face of the earth for almost a year and a half without a clue. How is that even remotely cool?"

"It's not. And I'm not going to even attempt an excuse. I don't think I can justify myself right now." She said.

"Look, no questions, nothing now. Just please promise me you won't pull something like that ever again. I've just found you. Don't push me away please. If you want your space I'll give it to you. I won't encroach on your independence either. But don't you ever disappear on me ever again." Draco grovelled.

Hermione stood shocked at his sincere request.

"Are you begging?" Was all she could ask.

"Grovelling more like it." He mumbled distastefully.

"I remember someone saying and I quote, 'Malfoy's don't beg or grovel Granger. We get what we want.' Ring a bell?"

"Yeah well, there's always a first time for everything." He defended himself.

"I don't know Draco. It's been just me for quite a while now. I don't know if having you around as a constant reminder would be good for me." Hermione said.

"Please. It will be better than being alone. I promise." He persuaded.

"I'll think about it."

"Okay. That's good enough for me." He said brightening up. "By the way, are you my healer?"

"Yes. You were transferred here during my call. I did everything I could to the bludger. But in vain. I had to resort to legilimency. I knew you would be mad but at that point I couldn't care less."

"So you saved me?" He asked cheekily.

"Oh please. Someone or the other would have figured it out eventually." She said modestly.

"But they didn't. You did. You saved me." He repeated.

"Fine." She relented. "I almost lost my power to think when Healer Frank said you were the patient. I'm so relieved you're fine."

"If you are my Healer, then who's Katherine?" He asked.

"Umm" she reddened. "She's an intern. I requested her to go instead of me. I didn't want to meet you before the game. You needed to focus on it."

"Why did you come clean? I would've left tomorrow and you could have hidden for half a day more and I would have never known. Why did you come to see me?" He asked softly.

Hermione stood silent for a bit, contemplating her answer.

"I thought of running away. But maybe I couldn't. Maybe I didn't want to?" She answered as if questioning herself.

"And I knew I was going to meet you again someday. Though I must say I never thought that the day would come so soon and in such circumstances. I couldn't live with myself if I had let you go without knowing that I was here."

Draco mulled over her answer, thanking all the powers above that she still was not completely lost. She wanted to see him. To meet him. She yearned for that familiarity.

Maybe he could bring her out of her funk faster if she accepted the help from him.

"Thank you Hermione. Thank you for doing that and not taking away that choice from me. You always were a fair person. You have no idea what you have given me by showing yourself today." He said.

He inched closer to her and enveloped her in a hug again. This time was much gentler.  
>"Your letter helped me too." She said softly.<p>

"I knew writing to you was a bloody good idea. You know how much I hate it don't you?" He chuckled.

"I do. And I'm grateful. Your letters are what I need to get through. I never would've admitted that a few months ago. But it's true. Yours and harry and Ginny's."

"Do you write back ever?"

She shook her head and pressed it deeper in his chest so as to not to see the disappointment in his eyes.

Soon, Hermione. Soon. You will write to them. But baby steps for now. Draco thought, not wanting to push her today itself. Today was about him and her. And he wasn't going to let anything spoil that.

A moment later they heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." Hermione called out as she pulled herself from his embrace.

Katherine popped her head in, trying to check if it was alright for her to enter.

"Katherine come in." Hermione said.

She walked in feeling slightly conscious and Draco couldn't help but ask, "So what brings you here Healer Katherine?"

Katherine blushed and looked at Hermione.  
>Hermione was chuckling and she dismissed Draco's comment with a wave of her hand. "What happened?"<p>

"I came to remind you that the last hour is up and we need to test Mr. Malfoy for the last time." Katherine said.

"Oh yeah! Draco! You're officially cured! No more sleeping beauty." Hermione exclaimed.

"Sleeping what? Granger are you insane?" He said, sounding appalled at being called a beauty.

"Never mind. Remind me to teach you about muggle fairy tales later." Hermione mumbled.

Draco rolled his eyes at her.

"So what do you guys do here for fun?" Draco asked excitedly.

Hermione and Katherine gave each other tentative looks.

It was going to be a long night.

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><strong>Thank you all dear readers for all your comments and excitement over them finally meeting!<strong>

**I hope you liked the dialogues between them!**

**The story is still going to retain it's themes of flashbacks, so don't worry! How Hermione and Draco's friendship progressed will also be revealed.**

**If there's anything else you would like to know or want me to incorporate anything in the story please do let me know!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	15. Chapter 15

**Thanking heartily;**

**Shivvv**  
><strong>Cinna16<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>Mihika<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>Head For The Gate<strong>

**For their encouraging reviews!**  
><strong>I'm glad you'll enjoyed their reunion!<strong>

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**CHAPTER 15.**

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"Mr. Malfoy, you were discharged five hours ago. Is there anything I can help you with?" Delinda asked.

"Hmmm. That depends. What's your name beautiful?" Draco turned on his charm.

Delinda blushed; the fact that a handsome but annoying Quidditch player had just called her beautiful didn't go unnoticed by her.

Maybe he's not that annoying. She thought, smiling at the man who had been lounging around in the waiting lounge for no apparent reason even after discharge.

"It's Delinda." She answered.

"What a floral name, Delinda. I'm delighted to meet you, in my fully awake state." Draco said.

Delinda blushed further.

"Thing is Delinda, I'm waiting for my Healer. I need to speak with her. You won't happen to know where she is right this moment, would you?" Draco asked.

"Umm. Mr. Malfoy, she has other patients. There were a few patients she had to attend to. She should be done within this hour." Delinda answered.

"Is she done for the day then? Or does she have a night shift?" Draco asked.

"Oh she's done with her shift already. She was so busy with your case that she didn't have the time to see her other patients in the morning. So she's rescheduled their appointments." Delinda replied.

"So she'll go home after?" Draco probed.

"Yes."

"And where would that be?" Draco tried.

"Her home? I'm sorry Mr. Malfoy. That's classified information. We cannot reveal the address of any of our staff members unless they authorise it." Delinda promptly said.

"Is that so? That's utterly saddening you see. Does that mean I can't have your address too?" Draco asked.

"Oh mine... It's just that Mr. Malfoy it's .. Actually that would not be a problem since I would be allowed to give you my own address." Delinda flustered.

"That's great then. I'll tell you a secret Delinda, only if you promise to help me." Draco whispered, elbows on the table and his body leaning towards the receptionist.

Delinda was getting even more flustered and she had turned quite red by now.

"Uh whatever you say Mr. Malfoy."

"Draco please. Okay Delinda, you see, the staff here has helped me so much. I'm healthy today because of you all. I just want to show my appreciation. It would be really kind of you to give me your, Katherine's and Hermione's address. I only want to send flowers. I promise." He said the last two words very softly.

Delinda was shocked. At Draco's forwardness and also by his request.

Surely it would be okay to give him the addresses just this once. He only wanted to show his appreciation.

And besides, it seemed like Healer Weasley knew him. So she wouldn't mind.

And it was almost impossible to say no to the grey silver pools that were his eyes.

His dishevelled longish blond strands got in front of his eyes sometimes, but that just added to the appeal.

Snap out of it Delinda! This guy is.. was a patient. Besides, he's much older than you.

But he's so good looking.

He's just flirting harmlessly. He doesn't mean anything.

So what? Anything to lighten up the drab hospital environment.

Sigh. Do what you want.

I think its okay. It can't be that bad.

Don't tell me I didn't warn you.

Be quiet.

Draco snapped his fingers in front of the receptionist's eyes.

She jerked out of her reverie and shook her head to rid her off the internal debate she had been having with herself.

"So?" Draco said expectantly.

"I umm... Only this once Mr. Umm Draco. But if anyone asks I didn't tell you anything."

"You got it. Don't worry." Draco smiled as he pocketed 3 parchments out of which he really wanted only one.

But either way, since he had promised, he would send flowers to the other two also. They had been nice.

"So you say that Hermione won't be done for another hour?" Draco confirmed.

Delinda nodded.

"Good." Draco said. "Now won't you be a dear and tell me where the nearest florist is?"

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"Hmm. This should be it. Trust Hermione to locate a completely muggle neighbourhood to settle in. How the hell does she do magic here?" Draco mused as he looked up at a tall building.

He walked in and asked to see someone who could help him out with renting apartments here.

He was directed to the manager on the 3rd floor.

Thanks to his quidditch which required him to travel often and also thanks to Hermione who had successfully removed any muggle prejudice from his mind, Draco had learnt basic muggle ways and he wasn't daunted by the idea of using the elevator on his own to reach his required floor.

He promptly made his way to the cabin titled building manager.

"Hello. I'd like to meet the manager please."

"Do you have an appointment?" The lady at the table asked.

"No. But I'd like to rent an apartment here. It's with respect to that."

"I see. Luckily he's in and unoccupied at the moment. If you'd kindly write your name down here I'll get back to you. Please feel free to sit down. "

"Sure."

The lady took the piece of paper with his name and disappeared behind a glass door.

Draco opted to keep standing. He turned to see a thick book on the table which turned out to be a photo album of sorts.

The pictures were still. Muggle album. He thought morosely. Who shoots still pictures? What's the point?

Nevertheless, he picked it up and started going through it.

They were snaps of various rooms.

After going through some 15 snaps he realized they were probably photos of the apartments in the very same building.

The houses seemed nice.

Hermione had chosen well.

Just then, a balding but immaculately dressed, middle aged man came out followed by the secretary.

"Hello Mr. Malfoy is it? I'm Curtis Logan. What can I do for you mate?" He said extending his hand.

Draco shook his hand and said. "Thank you for meeting me on such notice Mr. Logan. I've heard that this building rents out flats and I'm very interested in procuring one. Is there any possibility that I can have one at the soonest?"

Curtis Logan flashed a wide smile and said, "Of course Mr. Malfoy. That's what we do. Luckily there are 3 flats that are unoccupied as of now. We have flats for rent only on floors 4 through 8. The rest are all flats which are under ownership. Two flats on the 4th and one on the 5th floor are empty. They are completely furnished. I could take you to see them right now."

Draco didn't really care how the flat was. But if he didn't take interest in checking it out, the manager would probably get suspicious. Besides, he couldn't believe that there was a flat empty on the 5th floor. That was Hermione's floor!

"Sure. I want to take a look at the one on the 5th floor."

"As you wish. Gina, hand me the keys for 503 will you?" He asked his secretary.

"I like it. Can I have it for a month?" Draco asked.

"Of course. We prefer at least 6 months but this flat has been empty for so long. I'll have Gina draft an agreement and you can shift anytime this evening." Curtis said.

"That's great. If you could tell me the cost, I'll pop into a bank and get you the money when I come to shift in." Draco said.

"Sure Mr. Malfoy."

So Draco left the building and returned to wizarding Sydney. After a few directions, he managed to find a bank and exchanged some galleons for local muggle currency. He exchanged extra in case he'd need some more since he lived in a muggle area now.

An hour was almost up and Hermione would probably be returning soon.

He wondered what she would think when she wouldn't find him at the hospital.

He paid the manager and got his own set of keys.

He opened the windows wide and carefully removed Paris. He had shrunk her so as to avoid walking into the muggle lobby with an owl.

He made her to her normal size again and wrote a letter telling his coach that he was not going to join them on their way back to England and that he was continuing to stay here for the break.

Now all he had to do was to wait.

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He kept waiting to hear the elevator chime, signalling the arrival of an occupant of the floor.

But no one entered the floor for a long time.

Maybe she has her fireplace connected to the floo. It makes sense. In case of emergencies.

He decided he could not wait any longer.

He grabbed 2 mugs from his new kitchen and crossed the hallway to 501 which was her flat.

He knocked. And waited. He knocked again.

Then he spotted a bell next to the door.

He rang it. And waited.

Bloody hell Hermione. Are you home? Or not?

Just as he was about to turn back, the door opened.

Hermione's jaw slacked as she saw him standing in the carpeted hallway, 2 mugs in hand and a fine smirk on his face.

"Coffee? Neighbour!" He asked with a wide grin on his face.

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**Thank you for your response to their meeting finally!**

**Draco won't give up will he?**

**What do you'll feel about Draco moving in?**

**Will she be annoyed or amused?**

**Hope you liked this chapter!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	16. Chapter 16

**Heylo dear readers!**  
><strong>I want to thank;<strong>

**Mihika**  
><strong>Echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary - who is the <em>100th<em> reviewer! yeyyy!**  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>witchnimbus23<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr - he really only needed Hermione's address but thought it would seem less suspicious to ask for Katherine's address too. And Delinda, well he was just charming her so he reckoned he could send <strong>**her thank you flowers as well!**

**For their happy thoughts on the last chapter!**

**Touching 100 reviews is always remarkable!**

**Thank u all for reviewing and receiving this story so well!**

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**CHAPTER 16.**

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"You ... You ? Draco bloody Malfoy! Who the hell do you think you are just going off like that from the hospital after tailing me like a bloody dog all day? I was so worried. I almost was going to remove a trace on you until I remembered that I should probably check with your coach." Hermione yelled.

Draco kept his coffee mug holding hands in the same position and smirking at her through her anger and annoyance, he pushed himself through the door into her living room.

"Tsk tsk. Healer. Aren't you at least going to invite me in?"

"Right. Like that would keep you away." Hermione retorted back.

"You were worried enough to contact Ginklehertz." Draco said with a smug look.

"Yeah well. You're my patient. Of course I'd be worried. Especially after you told me you'd wait for me."

"You could've just asked Delinda. Sweet girl I say. What do you think?"

"Delinda is it? I see you've familiarised yourself with the staff. Of course I thought of asking her. But I got done so late that her shift was over. Did she give you my address? I'm going to kill her tomorrow."

"Relax Hermione. I would have found out where you lived some way or the other. You know that. No need to drag the poor girl in this."

"Poor girl is she now?" Hermione replied scathingly.

Draco smirked some more. Oh how he missed riling Hermione Granger.

"What is annoying you so much? The fact that your usually very capable receptionist couldn't resist my charms and handed me your address or that I'm actually here asking you to make me coffee?"

Hermione blinked for a second. She was completely taken aback by Draco's amused outburst.

"Why are you here Draco?" She asked sighing in defeat.

"Didn't you hear me earlier?" He asked cheerfully."I'm your neighbour. In 503"

Hermione looked shocked? Confused? Lost?

"What? You're joking."

"Am I laughing? No actually that would be a wrong rhetorical question since I actually do feel like laughing but I'll probably just settle for smirking."

"Aaaarrrgh Draco. What is it that you want?"

"I just want to know why you're so mad at me right now."

"I'm not mad. I'm just surprised to see you here is all."

"Hermione. You've always been a rubbish liar. Don't make me make you say the truth."

"Oh yeah? And how do you suppose you'd accomplish that? Use the imperio on me? Or perhaps you have an ampoule of veritaserum in your pocket."

Draco chuckled. Yep. He definitely missed the verbal battles. She was like a sharpener for blades. Draco was sure that retorting back and forth with her kept his brain well oiled.

"I don't have my wand on me and you can frisk me if you want. No ampoules no potions. What I do have are these." He said wiggling his hands and letting the mugs juggle about. "And you know very well that they are perfectly capable of tickling you till you beg for mercy."

Hermione's eyes widened. She took a step backward reflexively. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh I would."

She paled for a moment but the fire in her eyes returned soon. "Fine. Come in. But don't think I'm scared of your empty threats."

"Of course not." He humoured her.

"What?" She asked as he stood in the middle of her living room surveying the surroundings.

The room was the same as his living room. Intact beige paint. Brown curtains. Black and white furniture. Brown carpeting. It looked right out of the catalogue.

It was clean. As expected from Hermione Granger. But it was just that. An apartment that was rented. Where she existed. Not lived. But merely existed.

The Hermione he had known would have torn the place apart and replaced it with everything different.

There would be splashes of colour everywhere. And the curtains would be anything but brown. There would be a plethora of colourful cushions and a huge bookshelf in every room.

She would have also probably had some of her own abysmal knitted items thrown here and there. Yes. She was delusional enough to believe that she knitted well and her knitting was worthy of display in a living room.

There would have been pictures of everyone she was fond of in all possible places. But here there were none.

Hell there was nothing that wasn't brown, black, grey or white. And he for one knew that Hermione wasn't very partial towards those colours.

"Nothing. You've been living here ever since you've come?" Draco asked.

Hermione shrugged. "Well yeah. Why? What's wrong?"

"Everything. Hermione how do you stand it? You hated the fact that everything in my flat was black and silver." Draco questioned.

"Well I'm not really much at home. So I couldn't care less about the interiors."

"Hmm. Okay. Fair enough." Usually confrontation worked best with Hermione. But something told Draco that that was not the way to go with her now.

That was probably why she had run away in the first place. He would have to tackle her differently.

"You really have moved here haven't you?" Hermione asked.

"Well yes. I didn't think you'd be inviting me in your flat willingly so I chose the next best option."

Hermione couldn't believe him. He actually thought she would let him come stay with her. Delusional.

"Why _are_ you doing this?"

"Is that so difficult to figure out Hermione?" Draco inched forward, stepping dangerously close and disregarding her personal space.

"You practically _disappear_ Hermione. With no forwarding address. Without any goodbye or inkling as to how you are. And now that I've finally stumbled across you, by accident that too, you really think I'm letting you go?" He said it all in one breath.

"So that's where you were all afternoon? Tracking me and renting out a place in my building?" Hermione questioned.

"What did you think?" Draco asked.

"I um nothing. You were ill sometime ago and suddenly you disappear without telling me and it is a new city after all so Merlin knows where you would have gone and what if you had some residual weakness or so, we don't know if you're fully..."

"Granger. I'm fine." Draco said as he placed his index finger on her lips.

She continued to open and close her lips but had stopped talking.

"Besides, this is not the first time I've come to Sydney. And I am a wizard you know. Even if I did get lost, I'm pretty sure I'd be able to manage somehow." Draco said.

Hermione blushed at the obviousness of the statement.

She had just started rambling when Draco had asked why she was so annoyed or worried when she hadn't found him waiting where she supposed he would have been.

Truth was, she herself didn't know what had gotten into her.

At first she didn't want him to see her.

Then she would have preferred if he kept quiet about this and just left her to her own devices.

But when he actually had done that (or so she thought) she had felt a panic that she couldn't put a finger on.

What difference did it make whether he stayed or left?

She wanted to be left alone, did she not?

But when she saw him standing there with 2 mugs in his hands like an idiot, she suddenly realised how relieved she was that he was in front of her.

Maybe her subconscious had thought that he had left and that had led to the annoyance in her conscious state.

Yes. She definitely didn't want Draco Malfoy to leave.

But that didn't mean he needed to know that.

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**So what do you think?**

**Nothing in particular, I know. Just silly filler banter.**

**But I'm trying to establish a Draco/Hermione base for you'll, so you'll know how their friendship is.**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you to;**

**SaruDM**  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr<strong>  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>

**For their reviews!**

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**CHAPTER 17.**

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"Draco, it's 6.30 am. Is there a valid reason for you to be ringing my doorbell at this hour?" A sleepy and dishevelled Hermione said, yawning and not even bothering to cover her mouth.

"Warm welcome!" Draco chirped sarcastically. "Your hair still doesn't take mornings well does it?"

"Really? You're going to talk about my _hair_ at this hour?"

"Okay relax. Don't get so uptight. I just didn't know what time you'd be leaving for the hospital. So I thought why take a chance? May as well barge in early. Didn't bring my coffee mugs because I figured you'd have them too."

"Wait wait wait. You barge into my house at this unearthly hour and you expect me to make you coffee?"

"Yeah? Is that so unbelievable?" Draco said unabashedly.

"You're unbelievable." Hermione said, clutching her hair, shaking her head and wide eyed, all sleep gone.

She went back to her room and plopped on the bed even though she wasn't sleepy anymore.

Sure enough, Draco followed and plonked himself on the other side of the bed.

"Are you going to be this annoying for the whole month?" Hermione asked.

"Take a chill pill Hermione. I thought you were a morning person. And besides if I knew your schedule I wouldn't be staying up all night waiting for the crack of dawn to come see you." Draco said.

Hermione turned sideways to look at him. "You stayed up all night?"

"Well you know me. If I sleep I won't wake before midday. And you would've left by then." He said nonchalantly.

Hermione's eyes softened at this. Draco Malfoy giving up sleep! Boy! He really wanted to spend time with her.

"Also I think if you connected my floo to yours, you wouldn't have to answer the doorbell. I could come and go as I please." Draco suggested.

"That's what I'm worried about." Hermione mumbled under her breath.

"Did you say something?" Draco asked cheekily.

"Okay. I'll give you my schedule. But about the floo I'm not so sure. You may be a pain in the ass now but I actually have the option of just not opening the door. But if I open the floo, you can just come whenever you want. How will I ignore you then? It'll be the end of my privacy. "Hermione asked.

"What's wrong in coming whenever I want? And why do you need privacy? Do you walk around naked in the house?" Draco questioned.

Hermione turned red. "What in the world? Of course I don't. Even if I did it would be none of your business."

"Now I really want you to connect the floo." Draco said suggestively waggling his eyebrows.

"Oh please. Don't get too excited. You're never going to find me walking around naked. I don't do that."

"Then you shouldn't have a problem with connecting our floos. Or at least alter your wards so that I can apparate in."

"Oh no no. I'll just set the floo. At least with the noise and flames I'll have some warning. I can't let you apparate in as and when you want." Hermione said with a tone of finality.

"Good. That's settled then." Draco said victoriously and settled on the bed on his back.

"So now can we have breakfast? I'll cook." Draco offered.

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"You can't just come here whenever you want to Draco. I work here." Hermione said exasperatedly.

"But you just finished your shift. That's why I have your schedule. I'm on holiday here. Won't you show me around like a good friend?" He pouted.

Hermione sighed. What had she gotten herself into? Actually it wasn't her fault. Draco was too stubborn. Once he made up his mind to spend time with Hermione, not even Hermione could change it.

"Fine. But just this once. Next time don't come here. We can meet someplace else." Hermione said, knowing well that there would be many next times.

She wondered what Draco would do after his break was over.

Would she be relieved that he would finally leave?

Or would she miss him?

It doesn't matter. Hermione thought. He's here now and he's being his usual annoying self. Make the most of it.

"Okay. So what's the plan?" Hermione asked.

"You're the local here. You tell me what's there to do here. Have you eaten?" Draco asked.

"No. But it's too early for dinner." Hermione said.

"Hmm. Ok. Let's do some shopping then. We can build an appetite that way too." Draco suggested.

"Shopping?" Hermione asked. "You hate shopping. And you know I'm not particularly fond of shopping too."

"I know. I know." Draco said casually, linking his arm in hers. "But I've just shifted. And I don't know about you, but I really need to redecorate my flat. Let's go somewhere with good interiors."

"You're kidding. Aren't you?" Hermione asked.

"Nope."

"You're a wizard. You can change whatever you want. Besides, why do you want to waste money on redecorating when you're going to stay only for a month?" Hermione questioned.

"Oh come now Hermione. Remember how you always scolded me for being too dependent on magic and not doing anything on my own? I'm just trying to have some fun. I think redecorating the normal way will be fun. Plus think of the variety I'll get to choose from. I can't imagine and conjure all different types of fabrics and patterns etc etc." Draco went on.

Hermione just stood there looking at him, bewildered. She then shook her head in resignation.

"Fine. If that's your definition of fun." She relented.

"It used to be your definition of fun too." He said softly.

_"Come with me. It will be fun." Hermione coaxed._

_"Oh please Hermione. Be serious. Manually doing interiors of a house cannot really be classified as fun." Draco countered. "Besides, your little fiancé will be there. Along with boy wonder and weaslette. I hardly think that it would be fun for any of us if I came."_

_Hermione frowned. "I'm telling them then. This is ridiculous. School's over long back. It really doesn't make sense. You're my friend too. They have to accept you."_

_Draco came closer and held her shoulders._

_"It's your future home Hermione. A place where you're going to start anew and build new memories. I don't want you to fight for me there." Draco said._

_"I want memories of you too in that house." Hermione said._

_"Hmmm. I don't know. But the time you will be done with it, I'm not sure if I'll be here." Draco said._

_"That is why you should come help me. There will be so many things to choose from. How can I do it all alone?" Hermione blackmailed him._

_"Nice try Granger. You won't be alone. Weasley will be there. It's your home. Build it together. You don't need anyone else." Draco said._

_"I guess. Fine. I need to meet Ron at Couches and more now. I'll see you around." Hermione said dejectedly._

_"Have fun." Draco said as she disapparated._

_"Ron! You're late again. Never mind. Take a look around. I've already picked some colours. What do you think?" Hermione asked._

_"Sorry dear. I'm here now. Let's take a look." Ron said._

_After a few hours, they had almost all fabrics possible for couch covers, cushions, bed covers, curtains, table cloths etc._

_"Phew! This is exhausting. I wonder how muggles do it all the time. We could have just used magic you know that right?" Ron asked Hermione._

_"I know Ronald! But this is so much fun. Doesn't it make you feel involved? Like you're personally putting our home together." Hermione said._

_Ron kissed Hermione and smiled at her, taking in her childlike excitement._

_"All I know is that it makes you happy. And Merlin knows I want a home with you. So I'm ready for round 2 tomorrow. Furniture right?" Ron said._

_Hermione beamed and nodded and kissed him back._

"Umm. Yeah. Draco, I'm not sure I know any suitable places. Let me ask Katherine." Hermione said, spaced out by her sudden recollection.

Had she changed so much?

It was crazy how roles had been reversed.

She didn't even feel like she was the same person anymore.

Going through her daily routines with people who barely knew her, it had been easy to ignore the changes.

But when people from the past came into the present, the changes seemed even more prominent.

She didn't know what to feel about this change. Chucking all these thoughts aside, she asked Katherine for a few places that would suit Draco's need for interiors.

"Ready?" She asked as she walked into the lobby where Draco had been waiting for her.

He smiled and nodded as he took her arm and they walked out of the doors.

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	18. Chapter 18

**Thanking;**

**Echizenochi**  
><strong>Mihika<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>

**For reviewing the previous chapter.**

**2 updates in a day!**

**what can i say? The juices were flowing!**

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**CHAPTER 18.**

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Draco had a good time shopping for his 'new' flat. Or at least he acted as if he was having a good time.

Everything was "oh this will go well!" And "isn't this colour just amazing? I think it'll really bring out the contrast!"

At first Hermione was only half heartedly agreeing but when he picked up a disgusting looking green rug that had an even darker and horrible green line of ugly tassels, she almost gagged.

She absolutely forbade him to buy that. And after that Draco chose the gaudiest and worst things of the lot, knowing full well that however disinterested Hermione was, the utter abomination of his choice would irk the living daylights out of her and she would in turn get more involved.

"Gosh Draco. What has happened to your choice? You've been flying for so long that you've forgotten how people on land live."

Draco smirked. "See? That's why I dragged you here. Oh look! These curtains have buy one get one free!"

"Since when did Malfoy's get excited about sale's and gimmicks like buy one get one free? I was under the impression that you probably pay more at the cash counter and never take change back."

"Haha. Very funny. If you must know, ever since I started earning my own gold, I realized that hard earned money should never be wasted. But enough about that. I'm going to get those violet drapes. You should look about for the ones you like."

"Me? I'm not shopping for myself." Hermione said.

"Yeah I know." Draco rolled his eyes. "But I can't have 2 sets of curtains in my living room can I? Someone's got to use the other one. Might as well be you. Those brown ones are really terrible if you ask me."

Hermione stood thinking for a while.

She wasn't really into shopping but the variety here was insane.

And secretly she wished that Draco would have picked the peach and orange shaded sheers instead of the violet drapes.

They were simple and elegant and the colour just made everything brighter.

She could imagine herself waking up and curling with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate in the morning and the sun streaming through the sheers.

Well, it couldn't hurt to get those.

And it wasn't like she was buying them.

It was buy one get one free after all.

Although she made a mental note to pay her half to Draco later.

And Draco was right. What would he do with 2 sets of drapes?

Externally, she made a big deal of getting those 'free' drapes but inside she couldn't wait to change her brown ones into her newly acquired ones.

Draco looked satisfied with his conquest.

Hermione had begun to take interest and it made him happy.

Even though he had bribed the salesman to put up the 'buy one get one free' sign and he in fact would be paying for 2 sets, he didn't care.

As long as Hermione was getting back to being the old Hermione, he was happy.

He even forced her into getting a few colorful and varied sized cushions for her living room.

After a lot of forcing and bantering, the duo left the shop with arms full of bags.

They shrunk their shopping in a deserted lane and walked a bit ahead towards a restaurant that Katherine had highly recommended.

They ordered and while they waited, Draco asked for some wine.

"Muggle wine Draco?" Hermione asked amused.

"Yeah why not? I really like the flavour." Draco shrugged.

Hermione shook her head in partial disbelief. "It's amazing how muggle you've become."

"Is it? I think you're to blame." He said cheekily.

"Hey!" She said indignantly. "I merely used to explain things to you when you got curious. I never asked you to try anything."

"And yet I did." Draco said smiling. "And I must say I'm glad I did. It widens our horizons, don't you think? Trying out new things, sailing new seas."

"Oh my. Try to rein it Malfoy. Using muggle references. I think I might just die of shock." She said laughingly. "And since when did you get all philosophical?"

"It's nothing really. It's just that after we became friends, I found it easier to be curious about your way of life. As in the muggle way. And after all, they are people too. Who are doing so well for themselves without magic. You introduced me to all those things and I couldn't help but be curious to try it all out. And truthfully, after my parents passed, the fact that blood really didn't matter sank in more you know. Wizards and muggles, purebreeds and half breeds and muggle borns all die at some point, don't they? So what's the difference? It's better to co-exist and adapt to all good things that each world offers."

Hermione gaped at him.

She knew that Draco had become way more tolerant than what he used to be in school.

It started out slow and throughout Hogwarts he would yo-yo between being a jerk and a nice guy but Hermione held on and she had faith in him.

Which had paid off in the end.

After the fall of Voldemort and capture of most Death Eaters and leaving Hogwarts, Draco had become freer and with Hermione's help he had almost lost all prejudice and his ingrained brain washing.

"Wow. Draco that's deep." Hermione said. "I'm sorry about your parents. I know I've not been the best friend. But I heard about them quite late and frankly you never spoke about them in any of your letters." Hermione said softly.

"It's okay Hermione. I don't blame you. I didn't want to talk about it. Well, father passing was not so bad since we were never that close. But it still hurt. He was my father after all. Inspite of forcing me to take the dark mark and practically feeding me to Voldemort, he still was my father. But mother had always protected me. Or at least tried to. Her going was a blow. I really wish I'd have spent more time with her." Draco said wistfully.

Hermione covered his hand with her own and looked at him directly gently.

"I'm sorry. I really am. For everything. About your parents. About not being there. About not replying to the letters. I'm really sorry. My reasons are no excuses and I don't know if I'd be any good at condolences due to my own grief. But I really can hardly handle my own losses let alone help someone through theirs. Oh dear. I sound terrible Draco. I'm such a bad friend." Hermione moaned into her hands.

"Hermione. It's okay. Don't beat yourself up. I didn't expect anything from you. I don't want you to feel so bad about it. My parents lived well as long as they did. Well, father was under house arrest after the war but at least it was better than Azkaban. Don't be sad about it. I'm fine now." He placated her.

"How do you do it?" She asked.

"Do what?"

"Be ok about the loss of people in your life."

"I don't know. But in a way I'm always travelling. You could say I'm pretty much being as avoidant a personality as you." Draco said.

"But you're still Draco. The one I knew. As in the one who was my friend. Not the ferret in school." Hermione said smiling slightly.

"Funny Granger. You're still partial towards that nick name aren't you?" Draco asked.

"It was hilarious. Even though we were friends and I was pretty mad at Moody for doing that." Hermione said giggling.

"I don't know. It's just that I feel better knowing that they didn't have to suffer. They were ill for long before they died. So knowing that they are probably in a better place helps." Draco explained.

"That may be it." Hermione mused.

The waiter came with their food and they nibbled it in silence for a while.

Draco refilled their glasses and they continued to eat.

"Katherine was right." Draco said. "This place is excellent."

Hermione nodded. "I don't go out much. So I'm not really aware of many places. But Katherine's a saviour in such cases."

"She's awfully like you." Draco said.

"I know. I felt that too when I met her first." Hermione shared.

"But now I don't know." Draco said.

"Don't know what?" Hermione asked as she polished the last of her dish.

"Katherine is similar to old Hermione. Not new Hermione." Draco said.

"You're actually referring to me as old and new now?" Hermione asked slightly amused.

"What can I do? You have changed." Draco said.

Hermione sighed. "I know. But it's not intentional, I swear. It's just like I'm not into anything anymore. Only work keeps me sane."

"I'm not blaming you Mione. Of course you don't want to be like this. But you can try can't you? Look at you now. Sitting in a restaurant with your new drapes and cushions and an old friend. You actually cracked a few feeble jokes too." Draco said.

Hermione slapped his hand playfully at his jibe.

"It's easy with you. Well not easy really. You give me no choice. So whether I want to or not I have to give in to you if I want to retain my sanity. You don't leave me any choice." She smirked.

"That's why you needed to tell us about your hiding place sooner. We only wanted to help. You know that having someone only helps to cope. You didn't leave my side all of our 6th year even though I was an arse to you and practically threw you out of my life. You crawled your way back every time." Draco stressed.

"Yeah. I remember." Hermione said with a faint smile playing on her lips.

_"What are you looking at mudblood? Oh my apologies. You must have never seen a proper pureblooded wizard before. Now go away before you lay your filthy sight on me." Draco yelled._

_"Is that all?" Hermione asked in a bored tone, pretending to examine her nails._

_This infuriated Draco even more because he knew that the last thing she cared about was how her nails looked. And to actually give her nails more importance than the insults he was throwing at her! The nerve!_

_"Nothing original? Come on Draco. I know you can do better." Hermione egged him, coming closer to him._

_"Get away from me. Don't you dare come any closer Her... Granger! "He spat out her last name._

_"Or else? You'll stop me?" Hermione asked. "But how will you? For that you'll actually have to touch this filthy mudblood won't you?"_

_Draco flinched._

_"And being in the same room with me and breathing the same air I do is so unacceptable to you, then how are you going to push me away? No amount of sanitization will be able to wash off my mudblood germs from your hands." Hermione went on._

_"Stop Hermione. Stop. Why are you doing this?" Draco pleaded._

_"You know very well why." Hermione said sharply._

_"I don't want anything to do with you. Do you not understand it?" Draco said rudely._

_"If you would perhaps put more effort into your acting I'd probably be convinced. But sorry Draco. I just don't believe you." Hermione said easily._

_"I hate you." He spat._

_"You don't. Come now. Don't be a child. Don't resort to such juvenile insults. If you really want to hurt me, be more creative." She goaded._

_"Are you deaf? Or so thick skinned? I've spent weeks trying to get you off my back and you still don't get the message." Draco said in frustration._

_"And you can keep trying. Be my guest. But I'm not leaving you alone. I've had it defending you in front of Harry all the time. He's convinced you are up to something. For the longest I fought with him against this but now I'm starting to have my doubts. And let me tell you one thing Draco Malfoy. I'll find out what you're up to. And when I do, be rest assured that I will absolutely not let you go along with whatever it is that you're being forced to do." She said and marched off, leaving a stunned Draco behind._

_Draco collapsed on the floor. Insulting her always took great energy out of him._

_It was as if his entire being was fighting against the words in his head and on his lips._

_Hermione barely cared about what he said. She was convinced it was an act._

_Somewhere he was glad that he wasn't hurting her. But she was supposed to be hurt dammit._

_How else would he convince her to stay away? Nothing was working. Nothing._

_And when Hermione found out that he was trying to kill Dumbledore, he didn't know what would happen._

_Yes, he used the word when and not if. Because she was Hermione Granger. There were no 2 ways about it._

_She had promised that she would find out and now it was only a matter of time._

_He was a goner for sure. He didn't know what was worse._

_Having Voldemort force his misdeeds upon him or facing Hermione after she found out._

_Draco almost laughed at the absurdity of his thoughts. Comparing fear of Voldemort and fear of Hermione in the same plane! If anyone ever found out, they would certainly deem him mental and place him next to Lockhart at St. Mungo's._

_But Hermione's faith in him somehow steadied him. He had no idea what he was doing. But the fact that Hermione had not budged soothed him a bit. Even if he did admit this grudgingly._

"You never once left me. Even though I did everything I could." Draco said, interrupting her train of thought.

"How could I? You needed me." She said simply.

"Also we were bound in school. I couldn't run away like you did." Draco said.

"But you didn't give up either." Hermione said.

"I tried. But it was difficult since you could have been anywhere. You had it easy. You could always corner me in school. Especially with Potter's map. "Draco joked.

"Oh please. It took me ages to figure out you kept disappearing into the room of requirement." Hermione scoffed at his remark.

"But you did eventually." He said.

"Just like you." Hermione said.

"I got lucky." Draco shrugged.

"You call getting hit to death by a temperamental bludger lucky?"

"Of course. It led me to you. I wouldn't have it any other way." Draco stated.

"Idiot." Hermione said lovingly and shook her head.

"You do realize I'm not letting go." Draco said.

"That's what I'm afraid of." Hermione sighed.

But Draco and Hermione both knew that just like how Draco was actually relieved that Hermione had his back in the 6th year, similarly, Hermione was glad that he was here today.

Not like she was going to admit it to him anytime soon.

But she had a feeling that he already knew.

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**Hmmm. Too intense?**

**It had to happen.**

**They had to get the conversation out of the way!**

**I hope it didn't get too much for you'll.**

**But as I said there would be some angst.**

**Hope you'll liked!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	19. Chapter 19

**Thank you to ;**

**Head For The Gate**  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>

**For their reviews!**

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**CHAPTER 19.**

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_My Dear Hermione,_  
><em>I am so excited!<em>  
><em>Harry has taken leave from work for a week and he's taking me to Capri!<em>  
><em>He's so excited about the baby!<em>  
><em>My morning sickness has reduced considerably and according to Harry I'm not that hormonal any more.<em>  
><em>So he jumped at the chance of having a holiday for just the two of us before the baby comes.<em>  
><em>You know how it gets after a baby.<em>  
><em>We may not get a chance for a holiday anytime soon!<em>  
><em>Mum has lost it.<em>  
><em>She sends food almost every day and although that saves me the trouble to cook, it is spoiling Harry because once she stops sending he'll expect me to cook as good as mum.<em>  
><em>And you know I'm nowhere close.<em>  
><em>Although mum's offered to give me lessons.<em>  
><em>Angelina and Katie are pregnant too!<em>  
><em>I bet the twins had decided to get their wives pregnant together.<em>  
><em>They want their sons to be together.<em>  
><em>Yes, the twins are having boys.<em>  
><em>It's going to be a mad house.<em>  
><em>The boys will be a month younger than Ronald James and I'm afraid he's going to get roped into all sorts of pranks!<em>  
><em>That's about it on my end.<em>  
><em>How are you?<em>  
><em>How's work?<em>  
><em>I bet you never take any time off.<em>  
><em>You better be here by the time I deliver Hermione Granger.<em>  
><em>My baby needs his Godmother.<em>  
><em>You've got 8 months notice.<em>  
><em>Start packing!<em>  
><em>Oh that reminds me, I need to pack now.<em>  
><em>We are leaving in the morning and tonight we are going over to Andy's to meet Teddy.<em>  
><em>So I better get packing.<em>  
><em>You know Harry. He's bound to forget important things so I have to pack for him too.<em>  
><em>I'll send you a postcard from Capri.<em>  
><em>Harry says he's booked us a cottage by the sea!<em>  
><em>I'm so excited!<em>

_Harry sends his love too!_

_Love you Hermione._  
><em>Take care of yourself!<em>

_Ginny!_

Hermione couldn't help laughing at Ginny's letter.

She was so thrilled about her vacation that it was emanating from every sentence of her letter.

Ginny's letter was contagious. Hermione found herself getting excited for her friend.

She was glad that pregnancy was treating her well.

As a Healer, she had seen that women, who found it difficult to get pregnant, usually had difficult pregnancies.

But Hermione was sure that Harry would take care of her.

"Bloody hell Granger. How have you not smacked that owl yet?" Draco said.

Hermione was startled by his sudden presence.

"When did you get here?" Hermione asked, folding the letter.

"Just now. And the ruddy owl's constant pecking is bothering me already. Why don't you just get rid of it?" He asked as he picked an apple from the fruit basket and bit into it and settled on her couch.

"Oh dear. I totally forgot about Sinatra. I got so busy reading Ginny's letter." Hermione said as she hurried to feed him a piece of bread.

Sinatra got busy with his bread and Hermione went about looking for a spare bit of parchment.

"Oh the famous letters of Hermione Granger. Are you going to reply?" Draco asked.

"Yes. Of course I am." Hermione said.

Draco rolled his eyes. "I meant are you going to actually write in it?"

Hermione faltered for a bit.

She had been feeling much better lately.

She barely had any time to dwell over the past.

She would complete her shifts and Draco would be there, ready to drag her into doing something or the other.

It had not even been 5 days since he had shifted into her building and Hermione felt like Draco had been her neighbour forever.

It felt so natural to have him there. It was like they started right where they had left.

Well, Draco had to be given credit for that.

His letters filled the void that his absence created and Hermione never felt like it had been 3 years since she had seen him last.

Maybe she could write to Ginny now.

She certainly was in a better place.

She was spending time with Draco Malfoy. He was from her past.

Surely she could establish contact with Ginny again.

But then again Draco had always been a separate entity in Hermione's life.

For the longest, no one knew about their friendship.

So Draco had never been a part of Hermione's life in the way that Harry, Ginny, Ron and the Weasley's were.

Talking and meeting Draco was easy. Natural.

His face didn't remind her of Ron or of her life back in London.

Therefore allowing Ginny and Harry into her life again would mean reopening all wounds.

Well, I have to try sometime. She thought.

"I don't know. I mean I think I could write. But I'm not so sure." She answered Draco's question.

"How about you just write to them? You don't have to tell them where you are or anything. You read their letters all the time. It wouldn't hurt to write once in a while." Draco stated.

"Hmm. I get that. I really do. But if I start writing they'll expect me to go there or tell them where I am. And I don't know if I'm ready for that yet." She pondered out loud.

Draco threw the core of the apple into the bin and washed his hands.

He came and sat next to her on her dining table for two.

She clearly had never expected to have guests over, judging by the size of her table.

"When I heard about Weas.. Ron, I dropped everything and came back as soon as I could. But it wasn't soon enough. I came to know that you had requested for a quick funeral. No one there knew you were going to run away soon after. I wanted to meet you Hermione. I missed you by an hour. You have no idea how much I curse myself to this day for not reaching earlier." Draco said.

"I'm sorry." Hermione said softly, staring at her hands.

"It's not your fault. You needed to get out. His family was grieving and you wanted to grieve on your own. I get that. But I met Potter and his wife. If he was surprised to see me I couldn't tell. He was too distraught. Not over Ron. But over you. Everyone was looking for you. He was so worried that I think in those few days that we were searching for you; he forgot to grieve about Ron. Ginny was stronger than the rest. She assisted Potter in looking for you and never once did I see her cry when we met up. Seems as if she had diverted her attention from Ron to you. " Draco continued.

"I left a note. Why was everyone still looking for me?" Hermione asked sounding surprised.

"You leave a note and you actually though we would read it and fold the note in half and get on with our lives?" Draco asked incredously. "Of course we had to look for you. You were vulnerable. We had to find you. How could we leave you alone?"

"You teamed up with Harry and Ginny to look for me?" Hermione asked.

"I didn't care. I just had to find you. I don't know if Potter was happy about it or not. But he didn't say anything. He seemed to expect it almost. I take it that you must have told them about our friendship?" Draco asked.

Hermione nodded. "After you left for Japan, just a few days before my wedding, I told them. Of course I told Ron first. He was not happy."

Draco laughed. "I would'nt expect anything else. Of course he wouldn't be happy. I was a git to you for 3 whole school years and a git to them throughout school. What did you expect?"

"True." Hermione conceded. "But Harry took it better than Ron. No surprises there."

"He was devastated. Both his best friends had left him. Ginny was at a loss as to how to deal with him. Hermione, I've seen them without you. Imagine, his state was so bad that I felt for him. You were our best friend and I knew what he was going through. And it wasn't pretty. And I know if you had seen what I had, you wouldn't waste a single second and go meet them as soon as you could. You're a kind person innately, Hermione. Don't do this. Write to them. That's the least you can do. You owe them that much."

Hermione was tearing up by now but Draco made no move to comfort her.

He figured that she needed to know that the people she left behind were the same people who were still waiting for her.

She had been selfish then and she was being selfish now. Not that Draco could blame her.

But she had to stop pushing her friends away.

And if he had to resort to guilt to make her do that then so be it.

They weren't lies though. He was speaking absolute truth.

"I've been so horrible. I wonder how they don't hate me by now." Hermione sobbed.

"They love you. That's why they understand that you did what you did. They just want to hear from you. The would love to meet you. But if you could only start replying to their letters, it would be enough for them for now." Draco said.

"I'd hate me by now. Are you sure they don't hate me?" Hermione asked.

"I don't hate you. And I wrote you a lot. Without any replies. They are your best friends Hermione. I'm sure they will go berserk with happiness if you write to them." Draco reasoned.

"Okay. I'll try. But not yet. Ginny's leaving for a holiday. She gets back in a week. I'll write to her after that." Hermione said.

"Promise?" Draco asked.

She nodded. "Promise."

Draco heaved a sigh of relief.

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**Hermione writing to Ginny finally!**

**She's getting closer to being old Hermione!**

**Next up: Hermione and Draco go bungee jumping!**

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	20. Chapter 20

**Hello dear readers and reviewers!**  
><strong>As always I want to mention the reviewers of my last chapter!<strong>

**ChelseyJ**  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>Mihika<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>

**Thank you for taking the time to R and R!**

**Here is the next chapter and I hope you enjoy it!**

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**CHAPTER 20.**

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"I really cannot get over how bright and cheerful your flat looks." Hermione said as she filled her plate with crepes.

"Also when did you learn to cook? And most importantly, why?" She queried.

"You're just jealous because your flat is dull and boring. That explains why we've been hanging out here more often than at yours. As for the cooking, well you see umm that's a funny story really." Draco blushed.

Draco blushed? Since when did Draco Malfoy blush?

He turned red with anger or due to the cold his skin would take a pinkish tinge. But blushing? No. That wasn't Draco Malfoy style.

"You're blushing?" Hermione stated matter of factly but it still came out as a question.

"What? Me? No. I'm just a bit embarrassed about it." Draco said.

"Don't stop. Go on. Something tells me I will want to hear this." Hermione said with a lopsided smile.

Draco sighed dramatically.

He continued to cut up his crepes and put a forkful in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed deliberately slowly for effect.

"Take your time. I'm not holding my breath here." Hermione remarked sarcastically.

"Fine. If you must know." Draco started. "This was about 2 years ago. Ginklehertz had us practicing in Lyon. Our PR manager for France was this pretty little strawberry blond called Giselle. Petite. Quiet. Spoke to the players only when spoken to. But you get on her wrong side and there would be hell to pay. Naturally I started fancying her."

Hermione had expected something like this. At first she mentally shook her head thinking that this was so typically Draco.

They were best friends. He always spoke to her about his crushes and girlfriends. In detail. At least until he had left for Quidditch.

Something about being his complete confidante warmed her heart but sometimes the cheering and excitement at every new crush seemed forced.

She used to be torn. Whether to be happy for him and curiously squeeze more details out of him or wish that he wouldn't go overboard with details with her.

For no reason whatsoever, she would find that after an initial few minutes of genuine excitement for him, she would dwell over his latest crush or girlfriend and feel funny or wrong about it.

There was no jealousy. This she had established long back. Because she had had these feelings concerning Draco's girlfriends even when she had fancied Ron.

So it couldn't be jealousy. Maybe it was a feeling of protectiveness bordering on possessiveness.

Yes. That was it. She was one of the most important people in his life till someone else would come along.

Then he would pay attention to the newest girl and everything would be about her.

Of course Hermione wasn't that petty. She knew that theoretically she would always hold more importance for Draco than any silly crush or new girlfriend.

But that would be in the beginning.

What would happen when the girlfriend would become a more important part of his life?

Surely any progressive relationship grows and soon the partner assumes increased importance in life of said person.

Hermione had reached the peak of importance in Draco's life. There was no 'up' to go to. She was staying put.

But what would happen when someone bypassed her and took themselves a level higher? It's not like she would be replaced.

Hermione in her wayward reasoning's had assured herself that she wouldn't be replaced. It's just that maybe she would have to share him or his affections.

Whenever Draco was single, she was the sole object of his attention. And she rather liked that.

And in some twisted way she in a teeny tiny manner resented being sidelined.

Not that Draco ever made her feel unwanted or sidelined, she knew he didn't. But in her own head she felt that way.

But somehow inspite of such contrasting feelings, she knew that she had had Ron as her significant other for the longest time.

Yet Draco had never displayed such thoughts.

Maybe the male mind worked differently.

Or maybe Draco had just gotten accustomed to Ron's presence. Ron, after all was a part of Hermione's life even before Draco was.

Or maybe Draco was entirely way too confident about his position in her life.

Whatever it was, she found herself mentally frowning at the mention of another girl.

3 years later and after so many events in her life and she still instinctively mentally frowned at the mention of this pretty strawberry blond.

She continued to keep her face neutral as she tried berating herself as to why it mattered whom he fancied or did not?

"The most infuriating part was that she completely ignored me. Snubbed me directly. I couldn't take no for an answer. I asked her out several times but she kept saying no. Then one day, she asked me what is the one thing I would keep a house elf for and would never ever willingly do on my own? Obviously cooking was the first answer. She smirked and said that when I learned to cook and cooked for her, she would consider me. I was appalled at her demand. But I didn't want to give up. I started with French dishes and surprisingly started to enjoy cooking. I was so engrossed with quidditch and cooking lessons that I completely forgot the reason why I took up cooking.

Our last day in France, I finally cooked her a meal but I'd lost any romantic feelings I had for her. I told her that this was just a friendly lunch where she could sample my cooking. She smiled and complimented me on the meal and congratulated me for embracing something I never would have.

I realised that day that I merely had a crush on her from what I'd seen of her. I didn't know anything about her. In the game of proving her wrong and chasing her, I discovered a new hobby that I grew to love and forgot about her, a sign that I didn't truly fancy her. She on the other hand was just testing me." Draco laughed.

Hermione was stunned. "Testing you? How so?"

"If I hadn't taken up her challenge she'd have a reason to deny me. She wasn't interested in me at all. I know. I was devastated." He joked. "But if I had cooked for her, she would at least give me a chance since I'd done something she asked me. But she was somehow scarily intuitive and knew that I would get over the idea of her."

"Wow. That's quite a story." Hermione said.

She made a small mental fist pump and found herself relieved.

Why does it make a difference? You were married. He was away. You'll had your own lives. You know he'll eventually find someone. You really have issues, Hermione. She mentally chided herself over her childishness.

"Yup. Now you remember your promise?" Draco asked, clearing their plates.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"It wasn't a promise. I involuntarily said yes to you when you wouldn't leave me alone at work." Hermione grumbled.

"You worked a double shift. I didn't see you for 48 hours. Of course you would have to make it up to me." Draco countered.

"Whatever. I stick by my diagnosis. It was coercion on your part." Hermione said stubbornly.

"Either way. You promised and now there's no backing out. You have the entire day off and we are going to spend it doing what I have lined up for us." Draco said pompously.

"The mere fact that you're pressing on the part that I can't back out makes me think that you've planned something that will make me instinctively turn on my hells and run." Hermione deduced.

"Some Gryffindor you are." Draco retaliated.

"Oh no. Now I'm sure you've planned something awful. Remind me to not take a double shift whilst you're here again." Hermione moaned.

"Oh come on Hermione. Don't be a baby. Just wait till you find out." Draco cackled.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Will I ever be?" She answered his question with another question.

"No." He said simply and apparated them together.

"Oof." Hermione cried. "Thanks for the heads up."

"Had to make sure you came." Draco smirked.

Hermione finished brushing off her pants and looked at him. But her eyes widened as she took in her surroundings.

"Draco Malfoy. Why are we so very very high on a bridge?" She asked with some knowing trepidation.

"I think you'll eventually fit the pieces together Hermione." He said sneakily.

"If it is what I'm thinking it is, I believe I have the green light to strangle you. Because after 4th year, I remember telling you specifically if something like this is repeated, it'll be your neck and my hands." Hermione threatened.

_"Two more steps. Trust me. Will you relax? Your shoulders are so tense." Draco complained._

_"Well you can't expect me to stroll without a care in the world on a land that ends in a cliff while being blindfolded?" She shot back._

_"But my eyes are open. You really think I'll let you fall off?" Draco asked._

_Her body lost some rigidity and she continued to move ahead feeling the reassuring pressure of his hand on her back and his other hand in hers._

_"Ok stop." He commanded. "Now promise me you won't freak out. Just push aside everything and feel the second thing you feel and live in the moment. I say second thing because I know that the first will be fear. But just remember. You trust me."_

_She gulped and nodded as he took off her blindfold. She continued to keep her eyes shut for a few moments before she opened them slowly._

_One two three four..._

_She gasped._

_She held his hand tighter and her eyes widened as she took a 360 to take in her surroundings._

_"Draco..." She whispered. "This is... Magical!"_

_Draco chuckled. Magical indeed._

_In front of her lay a small mountain with a waterfall. The waterfall started at a much higher level. So she must be low below. Behind her was another mountain similar to the one in front of her minus the waterfall._

_Mesmerising greenery all around her with clear white water cascading in loud waves._

_She was deep in a valley and she had never been someplace like this before._

_"You like it?" Draco asked softly._

_"Like it? I love it. And to think that there's no way to come here except magic. It's almost sad that people without magic can't experience this." She said wistfully._

_"There's another way we can come and go." He said. "And since we came by portkey I thought we could leave by my way."_

_Hermione looked at him quizzically. "How? We can't apparate yet."_

_"I know." He said removing a shrunken broom from his pocket and restoring its size. "But we can fly."_

_She took a step backwards. "No way Draco Malfoy. You know I hate flying. And more so on a broom."_

_"I know Hermione. But trust me. You'll get to see the whole mountain that way. And the view from the broom is even better than now if you can believe that. And besides, I brought you here to relieve you from the stress of the triwizard tournament. I know you're worried about Potter and you're trying to do all it takes to help him. And it's really getting to you. I just want to help you conquer your fear."_

_Hermione bit her lip._

_"I won't let you fall." Draco added._

_"I know. It's just that..."_

_"Trust me?"_

_"I do. But not having control over something freaks me. And that's how I feel on a broom."_

_"Just let go. This once. And let someone else take care of you." He forced her._

_"Can't we take the portkey back?" She pleaded._

_"It was a single journey portkey." He said with a mischievous smile._

_Her features morphed into anger, "you purposely made a single journey portkey?"_

_"How else would I get you to fly?"_

_"And how is this going to help me relax? You know I get more tense in the air."_

_"I do. But this time you just have to sit. I'll even let you hold me tight. You can keep your eyes shut if you want. Though the view is breathtaking." He said._

_She bit her lip and pondered for a few seconds._

_"Fine. But only if you promise not to do any stunts in the air. I really won't appreciate it." She threatened._

_He nodded excitedly._

_"And Draco, next time you pull something like this, I won't think twice about throttling you." She warned._

_Draco gulped but nodded._

_"Okay. Get in front of me. I'll hold you. That way you can see better." Draco said._

_"But I'm going to close my eyes." She countered._

_"It will be a waste then Hermione. Really. Okay shut your eyes when we take off and when it's safe I'll tell you to open them. You can open, look and then if you wish you can shut them again till we touch the ground. Deal?"_

_Hermione thought again but she nodded. It sounded fair._

_Her heart beating vicariously, she positioned herself on Draco's broom and he took his place behind her, his long arms circling her waist and pulling her snug to fit into his contours._

_"There. All tucked in. You're going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to you." He whispered._

_And she believed him. When he said those words, all her inhibitions and doubts abated and she settled her back into his chest and he took off._

_She didn't even shut her eyes as he took off._

_And she was glad for it._

"That view was something else." Hermione recalled.

"I had to practically beg you to sit on my broom." Draco said.

"Obviously! What did you expect?" She asked.

"But you enjoyed the ride." Draco stated grinning.

"I merely enjoyed the view. Who said anything about enjoying the means to it?" Hermione shot back.

"Oh then I must have misread the twinkle in your eye and your face lighting up then. Also the fact that you were barely tense on the broom once you looked around may have been my imagination." He smirked.

Git. She thought. Why did he have to know her so well?

"Either way. Why are we here now?" She asked again.

"I'll spell it out to you. We. Are. Going. To. Go. Bungee. Jumping." He enunciated carefully as if he was talking to a kid.

She made a wide 'O' with her mouth and shook her head multiple times before the words came out of her mouth.

"Noooooo wayyyyyy." She backed away from him.

"Yes way." He said simply and smirked further.

"How do you even know what bungee jumping is? It's so muggle." She said.

"Oh please. I know more muggle things now than you do now." He said with an air of importance.

Hermione scoffed. "Yeah right."

"Did you even know that we could go bungee jumping here?" He challenged her.

She faltered. "Like I said. I don't get enough time. Besides you of all the people should know I'd hate it."

"You promised." He said.

"But you had promised me you wouldn't make me fly again in 4th year. You didn't keep that promise. Then why should I?" She fired.

"Granger, I promised I wouldn't make you fly on a broom. You didn't say anything about a rope and a bridge." He grinned from ear to ear.

She gaped at him.

"I hate you." Is all that she could mutter.

"Oh you don't. Come on. The staff is waiting for us. They're starting to glare at us since we are taking so long." He urged.

"You can go. I'll wait." She said tersely.

"Oh no. I arranged for a couple jump. I couldn't let you go alone, could I now?" He stated.

"How about I just don't go at all? That'll be better for me." Hermione said.

"Just let go Hermione. Like you did all those years ago. Don't you trust me?"

"You keep cashing in on that. I think I'm going to revoke my trust now." She grumbled.

"Please Hermione." He said softly but pleadingly.

Something in his voice melted her resolve and also her latent fear and she knew that however much she refuted, in the end she would have to yield to his unreasonable demand.

"It's really high." She said craning her neck.

"I know. But these people are very professional. And the harnesses are extremely safe."

"We'll be falling down. We could die."

"Did we die on the broom? It went well didn't it?"

"Yeah. But that was a broom. And you were flying it. There was no chance anything could happen."

Draco felt an incredible warmth spread till his fingertips at Hermione's confidence in him.

"Nothing will happen here either. I'll be with you. As I said this is safer than the broom. Trust me."

Hermione smiled. "You're saying that an awful lot today."

"Because you need to be convinced."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Just do it. This once. And then tell me later." He urged.

"Fine. You owe me. But no more promises and no more surprises now okay?"

He nodded.

They went over to the surly instructor who rattled off a series of instructions and rules.

They donned their harnesses and were snugly fit against each other.

"Ready?" He whispered into her ear.

"Am I ever?"

He smiled. She clutched his waist tighter and held her breath.

He took this as affirmation and nodded at the instructor.

Hermione closed her eyes. She was at the very edge with Draco. She couldn't bear to keep them open when he would jump, taking her with him.

"It'll be fine. Feel it Hermione. Feel it. I'm right here with you." He said and glided off the ledge effortlessly like he had done this before.

Hermione felt the force of gravity hit her smack on her whole body and her breath left her lungs in a major whoosh.

She felt the air hit her body and her body's resistance against the air smacked back, enveloping her backside.

In the front, Draco was strapped to her.

They were chest to chest and Hermione's hold on him tightened.

The minute her lungs refilled with fresh, biting air, she screamed.

And screamed.

And screamed.

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**So?**

**How was it?**

**I know this is a longer chapter than my usual ones.**

**But it just felt right going on and on.**

**I hope you'll liked the little inner banter Hermione had at the beginning of the chapter!**

**It may not have made much sense but Hermione is pretty confused about it herself.**

**And as for the jumping part, the latter half of it will be in the next chapter.**

**I hope it was okay.**

**I've never been bungee jumping before so it's only all made up. I can only hope it all fits!**

**I'm not getting enough reviews for this story so I don't know how you'll are liking this story.**

**So all you readers out there please do leave me some thoughts!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	21. Chapter 21

**Thank you to;**

**ChelseyJ**  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>samijewell<strong>  
><strong>anonymous<strong>  
><strong>Shivvv<strong>  
><strong>berrykool<strong>  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>LyndahJune<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>

**For their reviews!**

**Also I don't remember if I've written a disclaimer for this story and I'm too lazy to go and check so here it is - not jkr not mine except anything you don't recognize.**

**Although I do hope one day some few enthu ff writers will be writing a disclaimer for my works ;)**

**One can hope, right?**

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><strong>CHAPTER 21.<strong>

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_**HERMIONE'S POV :**_

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One moment we were on the edge and my eyebrows were buried in my hairline, sick with worry.

The other moment Draco is whispering reassuring in my ear and the next thing I know, we are flying.

Or rather falling.

My chest tightens with the loss of air in my lungs.

Before I go giddy due to lack of oxygen, I breathe. Deep.

And then I scream.

And keep screaming.

And I can't stop.

Somewhere in the middle I've shut my eyes tight. So tight that I'm seeing stars because of the pressure.

I feel Draco squeezing my shoulder gently.

He is also screaming with me. But his screams are more like exhilarated ones compared to my petrified ones.

I bet he's done this before.

Slowly I open my eyes when we've descended further.

Everything is upside down.

But yet... It's glorious.

Never ending expanse of green hills and the orange pink sky.

Funnily the sky is below and the hills are all over. Of course. I'm upside down.

I'm still frightened out of my wits after all, but with every pull of gravity that we descend, the fear gets less and less and is replaced by a feeling of nothingness.

There's nothing I feel. I'm still screaming of course, but out of sheer thrill now.

I feel nothing for a while. I don't know who I am or where I am.

I forget my past, my childhood, magic, Hogwarts, the war, Ron, his death, my emptiness, pain, everything.

I'm blank for a moment but then suddenly a realization hits me square.

I'm alive.

I'm defying gravity now.

The rope is pulling us up.

And I'm still alive. Suspended in air and flying. So close to death if even a single thing goes wrong.

But as of now I'm alive.

My face has broken into a wide open grin and my heart is thumping. Loud. So loud.

I bet Draco can hear it as well.

Or maybe not. Because I can't hear his heart. Only I feel his warmth and Merlin, it feels good to have him with me.

The blood is rushing in my ears and all I can hear is the air gushing around me and my own heart running a mile a minute.

I'm breathless and I'm exhilarated.

And I can't get over how alive I feel.

I don't know if it's the result of doing something that I have feared all my life or just throwing caution to the winds and just doing something because I was forced to, but for the first time in years I felt alive.

I felt alive. Like in those few moments that I was bodily upside down, I felt like everything had straightened out and I had stopped existing and started living.

It's not a near death experience where my entire life flashed in front of my eyes or something.

Only the opposite.

We can die in so many ways every day.

Yet we wake up and find a new day ahead of us.

And we exist. Merely exist. Or at least I do that.

Being so close to not having any control over my life, tethered by a rope and still alive, I felt feelings I couldn't express anymore.

I needn't feel guilty to live because of the dead.

Taking life for granted. Living each day as a liability is a disgrace to every breath we take.

Least I could do to honour Ron's memory is to live my life. He would have wanted me to be happy. He did want that. He had told me.

But it's easy for him to say. He left me behind.

But I swear on the rope that's keeping me alive that I'll try. I'll try best to live better. And laugh more.

All too soon it's over and we reach the edge of the bridge again.

The men ahead are trying to pull us closer.

The adrenaline is still bounding in my blood stream and I'm dizzy with all the blood rush to my head.

In a haze, I feel the instructor and his helper catch us and steady us.

They remove our safety harnesses and we sit on the chairs nearby for a while.

I'm still reeling from what just happened.

Unknown to me, my eyes are tearing up and I'm crying copiously but silently.

But I'm happy. Oh so happy. Happiest I've been in a long time.

I feel Draco take me in his arms and cuddle me protectively.

I'm thankful for that because my legs are so weak I can hardly stand straight.

He doesn't say anything. He doesn't need to.

I don't know if he knows what I'm feeling right now but I think he at least understands what I'm going through if not anything.

I take solace in his arms and we stay like that for a good few minutes or maybe more.

**.**

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_**GENERAL POV :**_

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Hermione had never understood why she put up with Draco's persuasiveness.

Even when they were enemies.

It was even more difficult to resist him now that they were friends.

His eyes, his reasoning, his words, his silence all spoke volumes in favour of what he was advocating.

Usually Hermione always got what she wanted. No one could win a battle of with against her and she held her own in the arguments department.

But a certain Slytherin had always managed to sidestep all that and get his way.

She didn't know what it was about him that when he made up his mind, there was nothing she could do to dissuade him.

That's probably why he had eventually found her. Well, technically she had found him but somewhere Hermione believed that his wish to meet her was so intense that coincidence itself had arranged the coincidence.

In fact, it was this trait of his that had led them to befriend each other all those years ago at Hogwarts.

_Draco Malfoy was fuming._

_To say he was pissed was an understatement._

_How dare she? How dare a mudblood, a girl that too, punch him right in the nose? And break it?_

_He hated her more than he ever had for those few moments after she had broken his nose._

_But that was not the reason he was ultimately livid about._

_His anger touched the skies when he grudgingly admitted that he was awed by her act._

_Speechless even._

_And dare he say it? That he had a new respect for her?_

_However much he tried poisoning his mind against her by checking all infuriating things about her in his mental list ; wait a minute.. Did he have a mental list about her?_

_He had lost it._

_Officially lost it._

_He tried enumerating all the things his father had taught or rather force-fed him with about mudbloods._

_They were impure. Their blood was dirty._  
><em>But he had never had the chance to see a bleeding Granger. So how could he be sure if her blood really wasn't red?<em>

_They didn't deserve magic. They were inferior to purebloods._  
><em>And yet, class after class, year after year she effortlessly beat him in grades while he struggled day in day out to best her, to gain approval from his scowling and whip happy father.<em>

_They have no class. People do not care for them or move about them waiting to be ordered and do favours for them like the purebloods._  
><em>And yet she seemed to be surrounded everyday by people who one would call friends, laughing, joking, sharing meals.<em>  
><em>She would give up a lot for the people she called her friends, he had noticed that.<em>  
><em>She was fiercely loyal, not merely a minion.<em>  
><em>She helped her friends because she liked them and they needed her help. Not because she was ordered around.<em>  
><em>And he knew that her friends would do anything for her.<em>

_Her parents are mere muggles. Waste of life. Lowly muggles._  
><em>Yet she received letters from them often.<em>  
><em>They came to drop and pick her up at Kings Cross each time.<em>  
><em>They hugged their child.<em>  
><em>And they looked like they loved her.<em>  
><em>Because anyone with eyes could see that.<em>  
><em>They surely didn't whip her if she came second in class.<em>  
><em>They probably spent Christmas together under one roof.<em>  
><em>They probably also ate meals together and did things together what a family did.<em>

_Draco Malfoy would never know what those things were._  
><em>Because he was a Malfoy. Pureblooded.<em>  
><em>Alone.<em>  
><em>Aloof.<em>  
><em>All he had of his family was his name.<em>

_The namesake friends he had were sons of people who sucked up to his father and were told to keep him happy._

_No one whom he could have a stimulating conversation with._

_No one who could challenge him when he was wrong._

_Of course outwardly Draco Malfoy was never wrong. Never. But of course he knew sometimes he was wrong. But he was never corrected. Because all his 'friends' wanted to do was suck up to him. Be in his good books._

_The girls in Slytherin too had taken up this role. No doubt each one hoped to be the next Mrs. Malfoy. The only prerequisite that was needed was to be a pureblood._

_So surrounded by this mindlessness, Draco was yearning for something fresh, something true and something that didn't suffocate him every morning he woke up alone in the cold dungeons._

_And Hermione Granger's punch gave him just what he was looking for._

_It jolted him out of his existence, the one that he had mentally begun to question, in spite of years of thorough brainwashing from Lucius._

_After all, a thinking mind is hard to chain._

_Infuriated and appalled as he was, he couldn't help but think how utterly refreshing it was to have someone who finally stood up to him._

_Of course Potter and Weasley had tried that too._

_But something about receiving a broken nose from a mudblood, the same one who defeated him in everything possible perhaps except quidditch; had given him the reason he was subconsciously looking for to refuse to believe what his father had taught him._

_And that day he realised that Hermione Granger, if not superior was most definitely an equal. In all respects._

_He found himself having irrestible urges to be around her after that._

_Even if it was to taunt an argument out from her._

_Her clashes with him were stimulating for him and he seemed to feed on them._

_He actually felt energised and mentally sharper after verbal combats with her even though most were just insults._

_Although he had completely stopped calling her mudblood. He did not believe in that anymore and he refused to mean anything he said to her._

_She seemed to have noticed the change in the insults too. Because she kept giving him confused looks and her insults were not so harsh either._

_Many times she realized that he would purposely seek her out and antagonize her._

_Sometimes he would just follow her. His steel grey eyes in her direction, trying to penetrate into her, trying to figure her out._

_Soon he grew tired of insulting her. He didn't wish to do that anymore. He wanted more._

_And that scared the shit out of him._

_He took very very long to admit it to himself that he wanted to befriend her._

_One day, she was sitting alone at a clearing close to Hagrid's hut studying some book._

_She was rarely alone. Usually Potter or/and Weasley were always with her._

_Draco never did anything without thinking but seeing her alone, his feet seemed to have a mind of his own and he found himself a few feet away from her._

_She didn't look up. Of course she wouldn't. She was reading._

_It wasn't until he was shuffling his feet nervously that she looked up._

_It didn't take anyone especially smart to say that she was startled to see him there._

_She immediately was on her feet, wand at the ready._

_"What do you want Malfoy? Why are you here?" She asked, distrust clearly etched in her eyes._

_He looked up at her and shuffled some more._

_Now that he was here he didn't know what to say._

_"Cat got your tongue? Or have you not brushed up on your latest book of insults yet?" She asked._

_"Granger. I heard that the hippogriff got away." He said._

_She looked at him confused. Not understanding what to make out of the statement._

_"No thanks to you." She retorted after a while._

_"Yeah. But it did. I guess you're relieved now." He said sincerely._

_But mentally he kicked himself. When he saw her sitting alone he had no idea what he was going to say to her. But chatting without any sensible train of thoughts about the exact thing that had caused her to punch him was just stupid._

_Since when did he start having trouble making conversation?_

_"What are you getting at Malfoy? I thought you hated it. It was only because of your stupidity and ego that a poor innocent creature was going to die." She stated._

_"I know. But now maybe it's better that it's free and not dead." Draco said._

_He mentally slapped himself. If this was how his apology was then it was no wonder that even the brightest witch of her age would not be able to decode his babbling into an apology._

_But since when did Malfoy's apologise? Let alone admit their mistakes?_

_He could have easily just muttered a quiet 'I'm sorry' and be done with it._

_But no. He had to use roundabout ways._

_He may have had a change of opinion about muggleborns and about her._

_But actually admitting mistakes and apologising was still far far away._

_He had no practice of using the word sorry and he most certainly wasn't going to start in front of her now._

_"I don't say this often but I'm saying it right now. I'm confused." Hermione said after a while._

_"You are here minus your usual sneer. You haven't called me a mudblood even once yet. And you're actually telling me that you don't mind that buckbeak is free and alive?" She pointed out._

_Draco just stood there, hands in pockets and still fighting mentally with the word sorry._

_"You're relieved about the bird. Which is good. It would have been too harsh to kill it anyway." He said._

_She scoffed. "Since when did you care about me or about being too harsh?"_

_He still stood silent. No smirk. No sneer. No cold grey eyes._

_Hermione lingered on his eyes for a while more._

_They were a deep grey and she saw something swirling in them._

_She shook her head. She was imagining things._

_She saw them again and there was something she had never seen in them ever before._

_Naturalness._

_He was saying the truth. He really meant what he was saying._

_Was he in his own twisted way trying to feel remorse and apologize about the whole thing?_

_No. That could not be it. Could it?_

_"Umm. Okay Granger. I'll leave you to yourself then." He said suddenly and turned to leave._

_Hermione could not believe that inspite of the most bizarre conversation she had had with Draco Malfoy, it had actually been civil. For once._

_Granted, she may have not understood much of it, but after seeing his eyes she wanted to believe that it was his way of apologizing._

_And she gave him credit for it. She could hardly expect him to come up front and say I'm sorry. That would be downright laughable. Not to say unbelievable._

_But what he was trying to convey, very badly though, reached her and in that moment she couldn't just let him go like that._

_"Wait! Malfoy !" She said to his back._

_He turned almost instantly to look at her, his steel grey orbs questioning her._

_"Thank you." She said sincerely._

_So what if he couldn't say it? She had no qualms in using the 3 magic words that had been taught to her._

_The slight brightening of his eyes, which she would have certainly missed if she wasn't looking for it, confirmed that she had said the right thing._

_She probably also imagined him giving her a miniscule nod of acknowledgement before he turned back and started walking towards the castle, leaving her completely bewildered._

_She didn't know at that time but this was the first encounter she had had with his eyes, which spoke more than he did and very soon there would come a time when she wouldn't be able to refuse those grey eyes without putting up a fight that she would eventually lose._

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**Okay so I know this is a bit of a dissociated chapter!**

**It starts off as Hermione's pov so you'll know how this is changing her and it ends in a flashback of how they started becoming friends!**

**I have no agenda as such with this story but it just seemed to fit in this scenario.**

**Somehow I couldn't refrain from writing the flashback about how it all started, in this chapter itself.**

**The jump has become monumental for Hermione and the punch was monumental for Draco.**

**Both changing their lives drastically.**

**So I felt that the parallelness warrants them to be in the same chapter!**

**Hope you'll were not bored since there weren't many dialogues.**

**Or worse confused!**

**I'm a bit nervous about this chapter so do let me know how I did because joining the dots about their past in a haphazard manner without confusing you'll is my aim!**

**Okay enough rambling!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	22. Chapter 22

**I want to thank;**

**GreenEyedPurpleRaven**  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>

**For their reviews!**

**The story is going to take a lighter turn now.**

**Well for most parts.**

**Of course there will be some sadness and emo content too.**  
><strong>But not much.<strong>

**The flashbacks may be angsty though!**  
><strong>And I hope it's not going too slow.<strong>  
><strong>Well, I've warned you ;)<strong>

**I'm really kicked that you'll are enjoying how it's panning out to be.**

**It's really great that you'll have accepted OOC Draco with open arms too!**

**Well, Hermione helped him become OOC so in the flashbacks you'll will see how he was before she came into his life!**

**Also I have so many reviewers telling me that they enjoy the flashback scenes! I'm absolutely thrilled by that!**

**They are my favourite parts of the story!**

**When this idea popped into my head (whilst I was in the shower, if you remember my first A/N :-p) I knew I had to incorporate a story that was going ahead in terms of time but still stuck in the past!**

**And flashbacks were the only way!**

**Yeyy for them!**

**Kay, I may have been on a yoga followed by shopping high; that explains the rambling.**

**Maybe you just want me to get on with the story, yeah?**

**I'm outta your way now ;)**

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**CHAPTER 22.**

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They stood like that for several minutes, Draco just holding her and rubbing soothing patterns on her back.

After few circles he decided on alphabets and after 'Z' when she still didn't seem to budge he started rubbing patterns of numbers from 0 onwards.

He didn't want to talk to her right now.

Well, he did obviously but he didn't think it was the time. She would have to be the opening spokesperson here.

At 39 he realised that his shirt was dripping and the tears were now seeping through and had caused his wet shirt to cling to his chest and abdomen, in turn wetting his torso too.

Not very comfortable. But he continued to stay that way.

At 57 the moisture was reaching his waistband. Maybe he was counting too fast.

Wow. It was amazing how many tears a small little tear gland can produce and hold.

At 65, she steadied herself and put some distance between them.

Her eyes were red and puffy and her nose was suffused but there wasn't any outright sadness reflecting in her eyes.

"I'm sorry. Oh dear, look at your shirt!" She said surveying her handiwork.

Before he could even say its okay, she snapped open her clutch and retrieved her wand and dried him in an instant.

Then she conjured a wet and a dry napkin and proceeded to freshen herself.

Draco was amazed at how logical she could be even in this state.

Well, that was Hermione. Logical was her middle name.

Not really. It was Jean. But you know what he meant.

Practicality and logic oozed from every thought and decision that Hermione Granger made. Except for the running away decision.

But Draco couldn't bring himself to blame her for that.

He knew what it felt like to have something that you loved so much being taken away from you.

And when that happened, you don't want to be next to anyone.

Hell, you can hardly be with yourself. So the only thing plausible seems to be creating distance.

He had done it too, had he not?

In 6th year, before her wedding and in his own head.

So how could he judge her for something he was guilty of too in the first place?

But all that didn't matter now. What mattered that Hermione was getting closer each day at giving herself another shot at happiness.

And he hoped that his idea today had not scared her too much.

She blew her nose rather loudly and that jerked Draco away from his own thoughts.

She threw him an apologetic glance and vanished her napkin and gave one final cleansing pat to her face with the dry one before vanishing that too.

He smiled at her and she returned it with a small but genuine smile of her own.

He conjured a glass and filled it with water from his wand tip and offered it to her.

She needed to replenish her tear glands after all.

"Thanks." She said as she accepted the glass and gulped down the liquid.

"Thank you." She repeated after she was done drinking the water.

"Granger, its only water. You don't need to thank me twice." He chuckled.

"No. For this. For getting me here. And practically pushing me into this. I wouldn't have done it if it weren't for you." She said.

"So I take it that you enjoyed your experience?" He asked.

"Let's just say it was life altering." She smiled.

He smiled wider.

He didn't need her to further her words or explain better.

The sentence she had said and the calm tears and the serene look on her face was enough to show him that he had achieved what he had desired to when he had brought her here.

Besides, the first time he had done this, in South Africa, he was swimming in a plethora of emotions. He could totally relate to what Hermione must have felt like.

"Even though I promised myself that if we survived this, I'd kill you the moment we are on land, I think it's safe to say that I've changed my mind. Consider yourself lucky." Hermione mock-glared at Draco.

Draco just flashed her a brilliant smile and said "So up for another go then?"

Hermione almost turned pale before she gave him a scorching look. "Don't push it Malfoy."

He laughed and casually draped an arm around her shoulders as they made their way back to a lonely patch from where they apparated home.

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"What are you doing?" Draco asked her from the kitchen.

Hermione had never been partial to home cooked meals since she had shifted to Australia.

Muggle frozen foods were her saviour but now that Draco was here, he was not going to let her or himself for that matter ever rely on that vile readymade frozen excuse they called food.

"I'm looking for parchment." She replied.

"You won't find it here Granger. Why would I have parchment here?" He asked, tossing some red wine generously into the pasta.

"Umm I don't know, maybe to write on?" She retorted.

"Clever. But you're here. I don't need to write now." He said as the pasta cooked and he buttered the bread with garlic paste mixed with butter and cheese.

"Oh." She said simply as she straightened up. "I'll just pop over at mine and get some writing material then."

She popped out before he could say anything.

She had modified the wards so that either of them could apparate into each other's flats. In spite of her earlier misgivings, she had finally given in.

Just as Draco was putting the bread into the oven she popped back again looking rather excited.

"If I'm not mistaken, it looks like you're going to write a letter." Draco said eyeing her warily. "Silly me."

"What's so silly? Your deductions are correct." Hermione said as she dipped her quill in the ink.

Draco almost dropped the ladle he was stirring the pasta with.

"You're actually writing a letter?" He asked again.

"Yep." She said casually.

Don't get excited Draco. He told himself. It might be a work related letter.

"To whom? If I may ask?" He said carefully.

"To Ginny. And Harry of course." She said rather cheerfully.

Mental fist pump. And a pat on the back. Ok Malfoy. You can get excited now, he told himself as he found himself smiling victoriously.

"Didn't you say they were holidaying somewhere? I believe there are still a couple of days left till they return." Draco inquired.

"Yeah. I know. But I'm charged right now. I thought about it you know. After the jump and all. And what if I had died during?" Hermione paused.  
>Draco rolled his eyes at this.<br>"Yes. So I was thinking better now than later. Also the resolve is strong right now. I want to write it before I have the chance to get down from the adrenaline high and back out." She said.

"Oh-kay. Sounds like a plan then." He said, tasting the pasta and nodding his head in approval.

"Yeah. So I'm going to write this letter and hand it over to you. And over the next two days I may undergo a change of mind and become all nervous. I may even threaten you. But you must, under no circumstance.s give in okay? Come Thursday and you have to owl the letter." Hermione panted.

Draco just stood there,looking at her with an expression that mirrored amusement and wonder, two plates laden with pasta in hand, when the buzzer on the oven went off.

He shook his head at the madness that was Hermione Granger and went over to retrieve his precious cheese garlic bread.

His mad, bushy haired, bossy friend was back. Or at least she was on her way back.

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**Yeah! So this was post adventure happenings!**

**Anyone noticed how I always make the male protagonists in my stories cook?**

**Well I have written only 2 stories, well 2 HP ones, and 1 Vampire diaries one: though needless to say even if I want to I can't make vampires cook. I could actually, this is FF after all!**

**Anywho, the point is that I'm absolutely obsessed about the idea of a man who can cook. I think it's incredibly sexy! (May have something to do with the fact that I'm lazy to cook and I love food!)**

**Sigh. To add to the fictional list of virtues and wants in the 'perfect' guy! (That's why I said fictional, don't run to correct me ;))**

**I think my rants are as long as the chapter in this one, don't judge me! I'm just feeling excessively talkative today!**

**And for those who want to talk back, the review blue thingy down there will let you do exactly that!**

**And this time a heartfelt 'thanks for reading' (even my A/N's.)**

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	23. Chapter 23

**A warm thank you to;**

**Mihika ****echizenochi ****Opposites ****ChelseyJ ****MaronTodai ****Daisy Seary CinziaTwut ****SaruDM**

**for reviewing the last chapter.**

**Also thanking all the readers who've subscribed/favourited this story!**

**I'm sure you'll are all excited that Hermione is resuming her previous attitude again all thanks to a pale blond Slytherin!**

**Here's some more for you'll! And a long chapter this time!**

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**CHAPTER 23.**

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_Dearest Ginny and Harry and little Ronald James,_

_I hope you're sitting while reading this._  
><em>I don't want you to faint.<em>  
><em>Yes it's me. And I'm writing you'll.<em>  
><em>I've missed you'll so much but I'm sure that is difficult to believe since I've been such a hermit and so selfish for the past few months.<em>  
><em>I'm really sorry.<em>  
><em>For ignoring you'll.<em>  
><em>For worrying you'll.<em>  
><em>I was blinded by my sorrows so much that I failed to you that you had lost a brother Ginny, Harry lost his best mate and the Weasley's lost a family member.<em>  
><em>I can't reverse what I've done but I can be better about it now.<em>  
><em>After a long time I've felt strong enough to write you'll and I hope you can find it in you to forgive me for being so insensitive. Your letters are what kept me going.<em>  
><em>And the news of little Ronald James brought happy tears to my eyes.<em>  
><em>I extend my heartiest congratulations to both of you'll.<em>  
><em>If there's anyone who deserves the love of a child it's you, Ginny and Harry.<em>  
><em>I am so so happy for you'll.<em>  
><em>Of course I'll be Godmother.<em>  
><em>I'd be pretty miffed if it was someone else.<em>  
><em>And I'm not promising but I'm surely hoping that I can be present when the little joy comes into our world.<em>  
><em>Things are getting better.<em>  
><em>I'm finally coming to terms with everything.<em>  
><em>It was difficult to write this letter initially but when I realised that any day can be our last, I wasted no time in penning this for you.<em>  
><em>I just want to say I'm really sorry for the hell I put you and Harry through when I left.<em>  
><em>I'm sure with every letter of mine that returned blank, I hurt you'll more.<em>  
><em>I cannot even begin to apologize for that.<em>  
><em>Thank you for being so patient and understanding.<em>  
><em>And stubborn.<em>  
><em>And never giving up on me.<em>  
><em>I don't know what I'd do without you'll.<em>  
><em>I miss you'll terribly too and soon I think I will be ready to meet you.<em>

_I love you'll._

_Hermione._

_PS: thanks for the postcard. It looks lovely. And you and Harry look wonderful together._  
><em>I'm so glad you had such a good time.<em>

**_._**

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**_._**

Katherine knocked Hermione cabin door before entering and said, "Hermione, Mr. Malfoy is looking for you. Should I send him in?"

Hermione looked up from some paperwork, "what time is it?" She asked absentmindedly.

"It's half past three." Katherine answered after consulting her watch.

"Why is he here at this time?" I thought he was coming at 5 to the cinema next door." Hermione mused almost to herself.

"I asked him the same thing. He said needs to talk to you about something." Katherine answered.

"Oh all right. Send him in. And Katherine? Have you started Mr. Freubler on solid food yet?" Hermione inquired.

Katherine nodded.

"Good. If he doesn't vomit for 2 hours after give him the strengthening potion." Hermione said.

"Okay. I'm sending Mr. Malfoy in." Katherine said.

"No need Katherine dear. I'm already here. And what's this Mr. Malfoy business? I'm not your patient anymore. You can call me Draco you know." Draco said as he eased himself into Hermione's cabin.

Hermione rolled her eyes and continued writing her report.

"Umm. Okay Draco. It's a habit that will go slowly. It took me days to say Hermione. Although I'm sure if she wouldn't glare at me every time I said Healer Weasley, I'd still be finding it difficult to say her name." Katherine laughed.

"I'm sure. She's quite good with those glares is she not?" Draco conceded.

Katherine nodded in the affirmative and Hermione put her pen down indignantly and said, "she's still here you know!"

Draco and Katherine exchanged amused glances.

"Hey Katherine, you're coming at 5 for the movie with us aren't you?" Draco confirmed.

Katherine nodded. "I'm bringing a friend too, if you don't mind." She said trying hard not to blush.

"Hmm. Is this friend of yours someone I know?" Draco asked knowingly.

"Oh come on Draco. Stop being such a girl. I swear you slytherins gossip like there's no tomorrow." Hermione chastised him.

Katherine seemed relieved at the distraction but Draco was not the one to budge.

"So say Katherine, Is this friend of yours the second most fit quidditch player from one of the best teams in the world?" Draco prodded again.

Katherine blushed again. "Sort of. You may know him."

"Oh you'll find I more than 'know him' Katherine. Matt and I are good friends. He owled me yesterday about today's plan." Draco waggled his eyebrows.

"You knew!" Katherine shot a wide eyed accusatory glance at him.

"Katherine. You should know that there's virtually nothing that Draco does not know about anyone. He's a regular subscriber of all gossip magazines all over the world." Hermione interjected.

"Hey!" Draco yelled. "I do not read all of them."

"You wish." Hermione said.

"Anyway" Draco said turning to Katherine again, "you better finish off everything by 5. I have tickets and I don't want to be late for the show. Don't let Hermione here overwork you."

Katherine laughed and left.

"Okay why are you here? Every minute you waste of mine is a minute lost from that movie you're dying to watch." Hermione said, not even looking up from her chart.

"I just popped by for a minute. I wanted to ask you something and I'll be gone. I'm meeting Matt for coffee before you'll join us." Draco explained.

"Oh." Hermione said, finally folding her papers in a file and looking up at Draco. "What is it that you wanted to ask me?"

"It's Thursday. I was going to owl this." He said indicating to the letter she had written Ginny. "I just wanted to ask you one last time before I sent it, if you were still sure about this."

Hermione pinched her nose and rubbed her eyes.

"I had to sooner or later." She answered. "Might as well sooner."

Draco nodded. "Okay. I'll be off now." He said before she changed her mind. "Don't be late." He smiled widely and left.

Hermione couldn't help smiling back.

Draco had one of the most dashing smiles she had ever seen on anyone.

And he smiled a lot. Like he was making up for all the school years that he would only smirk and sneer.

It was like he had discovered the pleasures of smiling late in life and he didn't want to fall behind.

Hermione decided that she liked smiling Draco much much more.

It was ironic that years ago she had taught him to smile and now years later, he was bringing smiles back into her life.

_"Really Malfoy. This is getting old now. Why are you following me? And you never talk." Hermione said exasperatedly after enduring more than 2 hours of silence in the presence of her Slytherin classmate._

_"This is a library Granger. Not your Gryffindor common room. I have as much right to sit here and study as do you." Draco replied._

_"Yes I know. But I want to know why are you sitting right across me? And so silently too? Not one insult or sneer. I can hardly concentrate on my work." She said._

_"I think you should have learned by now that I'm not going to insult you. I just merely want your company. You can study freely. I'm not going to hex you or anything." Draco replied._

_"You want my company?" Hermione repeated incredously. "Since when did purebloods like you born with the proverbial silver spoon in their mouth seek out the company of filthy mudbloods?"_

_Draco cringed inwardly at the use of the words that he used to say to her once upon a time. But his face betrayed nothing. He stayed composed as ever._

_"I don't blame you for thinking that way. But I just want to say that I don't believe you are inferior to me anymore. For what it's worth, I have no prejudices against you." Draco said with difficulty._

_Admitting to her that he was indeed a changed person was difficult for him. Especially when she looked at him with such distrust._

_"What do you want Malfoy? You can't be nice unless there is something you want from someone." Hermione stated._

_Draco sighed. He knew it was going to be tough convincing her. But he didn't want to convince her._

_He just wanted to co-exist peacefully with her._

_He knew that his persistence looked like borderline stalking from a third person's point of view. But that's all he could expect from her._

_He knew that she wouldn't ever be interested in befriending someone like him. And frankly why should she?_

_He had only verbally tormented her and her friends for 3 years. There was no reason she should trust him._

_"Look Granger. I don't want anything. Forget I said anything. But when I say I'm not going to trouble or insult you anymore, I mean it." Draco said and got back to his essay._

_Hermione gaped at him. She didn't know what to make out of this new Malfoy._

_Sure enough he had stopped troubling her. No snide remarks, no pranks, no hidden hexes. He had almost stopped insulting Harry and Ron too. Had he really changed?_

_Was it even possible? Anyway she thought she shouldn't bother about him now. He claimed he had changed and he didn't want anything. So she thought it best to leave it there._

_And if he indeed had changed then it was good for her. It saved her the trouble of thinking retorts to get back at him._

_She gave him one last look and got back to her charms homework._

_She could still see him from the corner of her eyes and however much she tried to ignore him, she kept stealing sidelong glances at him._

_He on the other hand was busy reading and writing his essay._

_Another half hour passed and Hermione glanced at him twice more in that timeframe._

_He seemed pretty into his essay. His parchment was almost two feet long and he was still going on with it._

_Hermione finished her charms homework and started with transfiguration._

_A thousand words into her essay, she noticed that Malfoy had stopped writing and he was sitting still for some time._

_Not that she cared. But her curiosity got the better of her and she sneaked a look at him._

_His usually impassive face was lined with confusion. Like there were some questions going on in his head. He had stopped writing too and was now shuffling through some books probably trying to find something._

_Hermione continued to work on her own essay without giving it another thought._

_A few minutes later she heard an exasperated sigh. Undoubtedly from the new study partner she had seemed to acquire._

_She looked up to see him get up from his chair and head towards the shelves where reference books were stacked._

_What was he looking for? Hermione got curious again and she too got up. Anyway she wanted to stretch her legs a bit. And she felt like taking a break. So she thought that probably reading a few pages of advanced arithmancy for fun would relax her._

_She headed towards the shelves where Draco was presumably looking for something._

_She didn't want to be the one to start a conversation with him but the silence was killing her._

_Silence while being alone was another thing but when someone was 2 feet in front of you, keeping quiet was very difficult for Hermione._

_And especially when Draco seemed to be having some problems with his homework. Hermione couldn't control herself from asking him._

_And he was being civil. It couldn't hurt to return the courtesy could it?_

_She retrieved the copy of Advanced Arithmancy and turned hesitantly towards Malfoy who was still looking for something._

_She swallowed her misgivings and asked, "Looking for something? Maybe I could help?" She asked questioningly._

_He turned to her, looking as surprised as she was feeling._

_"Umm. I'm looking for a book. But I can't seem to find it." He answered finally._

_"Which one? I know the order of the books kept in this section." Hermione said._

_"Oh. Wow. That is something." Draco said sounding impressed. "But I'm not surprised." The corners of his mouth twitched ever so slightly giving him the appearance that he wanted to smile but was controlling it._

_Hermione thought she was seeing things._

_"What? I happen to go through these books from time to time. It only makes sense to know which book is where." She defended herself._

_"You could always use a summoning charm you know." He said, his voice laced with amusement but his face still not showing anything._

_"I know." Hermione rolled her eyes. "But then again sometimes I don't know what I want to read. So I just go through the titles till I decide what I want."_

_"Oh." Draco said. "That makes sense too."_

_"So which one are you looking for?" Hermione asked again._

_"Umm. Actually I don't know what I'm looking for." Draco said with a sigh._

_"I don't understand." Hermione said furrowing her brow._

_"Actually you remember the essay that professor Snape asked us to write?" Draco asked._

_Hermione nodded. "The one on the fresh and expired Dragon blood?"_

_Draco nodded. "Yes the same one. So I've found all the matter. And I've looked everywhere but I just cannot find the amount of time that determines when the blood has expired."_

_"And I'm sure professor Snape would not appreciate me leaving out that detail." He continued._

_"That is correct. But you won't find that information here in the potions section,Malfoy." Hermione said._

_"What? You've found it already?" Draco asked amazed. "But that essay isn't even due for another fortnight. Why are you already done with it?"_

_Hermione almost smiled. "I do my homework the day I get it. But why are you doing it now? You still have time."_

_"As cool as I may seem, I pretty much like to finish my homework weekly. Not as much on schedule like you though." He said almost smiling? Smirking? A midway act between the two?_

_He jokes. He actually jokes. But doesn't even smile. She thought ruefully._

_Why does it matter to you if he smiles or smirks? A loud voice in her head asked her. Well, never mind._

_"Oh. That's wise. So do you want to know when the blood expires? I'm done with my essay, you could read it if you wish to." She said guardedly, not knowing how Malfoy would react to this offer of hers._

_Draco's eyes brightened at the offer but his face remained the same shade of indifferent. "That's nice of you. But I don't want to seem like I've copied. After all you did take the trouble to do the research."_

_Hermione was slightly impressed and more bewildered by this comment._

_A Slytherin refusing help? It would have been more believable if he had tricked her into telling him the answer. Slytherins were manipulative that way._

_"Oh. That's also right I suppose. But can I at least give you a hint?" She asked, desperate to impart some help. And frankly the sight of him searching the wrong section of the library when she could be sending him in the right direction was driving her nuts._

_"Are you trying to help me?" Draco asked looking surprised. He had never expected to hold a conversation with Hermione Granger let alone have her offering him help._

_She really was kind. All he had done was behave in a normal, civil manner and she had instantly let go the years of insults and torture he had inflicted on her._

_"Yes?" She answered tentatively._

_"But why?" He asked looking confused._

_It was her turn to look confused now. "Why not? You seem like you need It."_

_"Yes but I've been nothing but horrible to you ever since we've met. Why would you want to be nice?"_

_Hermione looked baffled for a moment and then suddenly without warning she burst out into tiny chuckles._

_Draco looked confused._

_"You mean you'd expect someone to do something nice for somebody only if they have an agenda?" Hermione asked._

_"Well," Draco started. "What's the point of being nice to someone if you don't get anything in return?"_

_Hermione stopped laughing and looked at him like he was the most absurd thing on earth. She would have actually said something biting to him in return but the look of absolute sincerity on his face stopped her. He seemed really genuine with his question and he wasn't joking._

_Merlin. This boy was even more messed up than she had ever imagined._

_What values had he been brought up with if at the age of 14 he actually had to ask the question he just had asked?_

_"You mean you've never done something for someone just because it feels good or it's the right thing to do?" She asked._

_He shook his head. "Father always said that everything is about profit and loss and power. If someone needs something for you, they must have something to offer in return. Else they will take us for granted and our power will suffer."_

_Hermione gaped._

_What a load of crap! She said in her mind._

_"Okayyy. So what about love? When your parents love you what do they expect in return?" Hermione asked, trying to find a way to make him see how wrong he was._

_Draco looked like he was thinking hard for a minute._

_"What do you mean by love me? They've never told me that. But they do buy me the best of things and I always have expensive presents. They take me to good places for holidays. I suppose that counts. And I guess they expect me to behave the way they want me to. Follow their ideologies and footsteps." Draco said._

_Hermione could not believe her ears._

_Everything he had just said sounded so... So... Wrong!_

_He must have read her expression of utter disapproval. He immediately stood up and started packing his bag._

_"I don't know why I said that. I've been talking too much today. I'm sorry to have taken up your time." He said quickly, not meeting her eyes._

_Why did he have to speak so much? And that too with Granger. Now she had gone all weird on him._

_If truth be told he hadn't thought before talking. He was just so hungry to have a conversation with her, he forgot all about being guarded in front of her. It was easy to be himself and get caught up in talking with her._

_But then the look on her face had made him realise that even though he had pushed everything behind him and started seeing her in a different light, she had not._

_He was still Malfoy to her. The Slytherin who always had an ulterior motive._

_"Malfoy! Wait. It's ok. Don't go. I was just amazed because you shared something like this with me. I wouldn't have ever expected us to have a personal conversation." Hermione gushed, trying to stop him before he left._

_Why did she want to stop him though?_

_Shoving aside the thought she got up from her chair to face him._

_He stopped short surprised that she was thinking the same thing he had been._

_"So why?" Hermione asked._

_"Why what?" Draco questioned back._

_"Why are you being civil to me? Why have you stopped being the old Malfoy ? What are you getting in return?" Hermione asked._

_He stood there wondering about her question._

_Why indeed?_

_There was nothing he wanted in return._

_And that was the first time ever Draco Malfoy had done something without expecting anything in return._

_Of course he had never imagined Hermione to actually talk with him or associate with him. He was content with only being in her presence._

_So really, he wanted nothing from her._

_But she had begun to talk to him as if she had put the past behind and for some reason; although it was unexpected it was extremely pleasant._

_"Umm. Actually I didn't think of it that way. I'm just tired of treating you like I have. Of late I've been thinking how unnecessary that was. I don't really want anything in return." Draco said honestly. "But I suppose it would be difficult to believe me, wouldn't it?"_

_Draco looked torn, almost hopeful. As if urging her to believe him but at the same time resigned to thinking that she had no reason to believe him._

_"It is rather odd." Hermione said finally. "But I believe you."_

_His eyes shot up towards her, an unmistakable expression of surprise and happiness in them._

_"You do?" He repeated._

_"Yes Malfoy. I do." She replied. "But since you're being nice to me I think I'll return the favour."_

_She sat down and smirked, "the book you're looking for is called 'old blood' in the magical creatures section under dragons."_

_Draco gaped at her. She had just effortlessly pulled a Slytherin. Done something for someone who had done something for her._

_He was more than awed by her. He knew that she would have helped him regardless of anything, but what she had just done was downright clever._

_He almost felt that he had earned her help and was not indebted to her. She may not have known but may have guessed that Malfoys hated to be in anyone's debt. Not that he cared much for stuff like that these days._

_He didn't know what to say to her. So he settled for a small smile. A slight tug of his lips that almost constituted a smile._

_A small one but a genuine one._

_It was the first time Hermione had seen him smile._

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**Okayyyy long flashbacks!**

**Hope you liked!**

**I thought this story lacked old Draco since MY Draco (yes I said mine ;) ) is too OOC.**

**But I like him nonetheless!**

**I've taken so long to get this chapter written. I kept writing it in pieces. And the worst thing was that I had the entire chapter outlined in my head but I kept getting interrupted and this chapter took almost 3 days to write even though I cud finish it in 3 hours!**

**So here it is finally!**

**And readers please review! I really appreciate the feedback!**

**I feel like updating speedily when I know there are people waiting to read more!**

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	24. Chapter 24

**Thank you oh loyal reviewers;**

**Mihika**  
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**For letting me know your thoughts.**

**I have a stupid grin every time I get a review alert and I read your comments!**

**So if I'm alone, the grin is well hidden! But in public I look like an idiot, smiling at my phone!**

**My friends are suspecting that I'm having text conversations with someone rather interesting!**

**Thank you very much!**

**I'm sure I'm wearing you'll down by my incessant A/N's so I'm shooing off!**

**Happy reading!**

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**CHAPTER 24.**

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"HARRRYYY! HARRY? Where are you? Come here this instant! Sweet Merlin, I think I'm going through what do they call it? An electric shock? I have goose bumps all over." Ginny hollered from the kitchen.

Harry ran to where she was and held her by the waist. "What what? What's wrong? Is it the baby? What's happening?" He stuttered.

Ginny sat down on the chair and pulled Harry along with him, her eyes moist by now.

"Harry..."

"Ginny you're freaking the pants off me. Should I call your mum? Damn it why won't you speak?" Harry yelled.

Her eyes were pooling dangerously by now and she offered him the letter that was in her hand.

He looked at her quizzically before taking it in his hand.

He read the title and quickly his eyes scanned the page lower down to see who the sender was.

When his gaze rested on Hermione's name, his body steeled in shock and his eyes refused to leave her name.

"Ginny ... "

"She wrote Harry, she wrote." Ginny mumbled between sobs that she wasn't even trying to hide.

Harry sat down opposite his pregnant wife, his face still incredulously etched with questions but overall elation.

When you have been hoping for something to happen since a long long time and when it really does, one doesn't know how to react. Inwardly ecstatic, outwardly it may appear like one is in shock because they can't believe it's finally happened.

And that is how Harry and Ginny Potter felt today. For the second time in their life.

The first was the news of Ginny's pregnancy and now Hermione had written back.

"Did you .. Did you read it?" Harry asked, trying to bring his voice back to normal.

Ginny shook her head. "I thought we could read it together." She said, clutching her husband's hand.

Harry nodded and wiped the corners of his eyes with his sleeve before starting to read the letter out loud.

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"Granger?"

"Hmm?"

"It's nice here. I like Australia. Do you like it here?"

Hermione stopped chewing her pen and looked up from her notes.

"I guess I do. I mean it's not home but it is for now."

"Why Australia?" He asked.

"You know my parents stay here. It was the only place I could think of coming to."

"Didn't Potter try to find you here? It would seem obvious."

Hermione nodded. "He did. But I forced my parents to never tell. Although after I left my parents' home, Harry did come and meet them once."

"How did you know that? Did your parents tell you?"

"No. He told me once in a letter. He suspects I'm here. But he's not sure. Besides, my parents are in Canberra." Hermione answered.

"How often do you meet your parents?" Draco asked.

Hermione flustered at his question and her eyes reverted back to the notes she was reading.

"I... umm. Why are we having this conversation Draco?" She asked finally.

"Just wanted to know what went through your mind when you left. I haven't heard you speak about them ever since I came here." Draco said.

"Okay. It's not important. This place is far away from England. And has a decent wizard population too. So I'm away and near at the same time." Hermione said.

"You've stopped meeting your parents haven't you?" Draco guessed. "You're running away from them as well."

Hermione slammed her pen on her notepad and looked up, fire blazing in her eyes.

"Yes. So what? I went to them and all they did was pity me and mope with me. After a point they insisted I go back. They got tired of constantly lying to Harry and Molly and they tried forcing me to talk to them. I wasn't bloody ready yet. If I had to talk to them I bloody well would have done it myself. I didn't need anyone to keep their life on hold for me and treat me like I'm a box with fragile written all over on it." Hermione bellowed.

"I couldn't even escape my memories there. I realised if I wanted some peace I needed to get away and so I ran. Okay? Are you happy now? I ran like a bloody coward and now I don't have the guts to pick up from where I left my parents." She continued yelling.

Draco just stared at her. One moment she was calm and the other moment his question had functioned like the whistle in a pressure cooker and she was letting out steam.

If the situation wasn't serious, he could have imagined smoke coming out of her ears.

But there she stood, in beige pants and a navy turtleneck, her curly wild hair twisted up and clutched in those clips that went chip chop when you played with them. Her furious yelling had caused some hair to fall out and it framed her agitated face rather endearingly.

Draco had never thought she had ever looked as beautiful as she did now.

Why was it that her appeal and her subtle beauty peaked when she was yelling, angry or blazingly passionate about anything? Like the time in school when she went on and on about elf rights even though no one paid her any attention except Potter and Weasley, that too grudgingly. Well, and he too himself had borne the brunt of it in private. All because his tyrannical father treated them so lousily.

He didn't know whether it was a good thing or bad because one could just look at her, keep looking at her and drown out all that she said but still follow the motions of her lips which moved furiously as she tried to get her point across.

However well kept or contained her hair may have been, whenever she got furious, her hair seemed to gain a mind and body of their own and they always seemed to free themselves of their containment and she assumed the look of a wild tigress.

Oh Merlin. Dare he say it? Or even think it? There was no rule that said you couldn't find your best friend sexy.

There he thought it.

But with slight guilt.

Best friends aren't supposed to have sexy thoughts about their best friends.

At least not now.

After so many years.

It was long ago. And it was supposed to have gone away.

But so was she.

And she came back. Or he did rather.

So the traitorous thoughts had to come back too?

Merlin! He needed to get a hold on himself.

You're seeing her after so long. It's just a late reaction. And besides you always found her charming. And hot. And sexy.

He slapped his forehead mentally and yelled at his inner voice to shut up.

Men sucked at multitasking, but one thing he had learned after dating some evilly boring women was the art of simultaneously listening and paying attention to the woman in front of you and having a more interesting internal monologue with yourself at the same time.

He was rather proud of this ability of his and was using it right now.

Not that she was boring. Not by a long shot. No. She was captivating. But she evoked all these feelings in him that had to be addressed immediately or dismissed spontaneously. Either of which required said internal monologue. Additionally, he had to listen to her as well. What she was saying was important too.

So he cut short his self battle and decided to pay sole attention to the still fuming witch in front of him.

"So you fought with them and left. And you've not contacted them since?" He asked.

She seemed to have calmed marginally because she didn't yell as she spoke.

"I was so mad. All I wanted was to be left alone. And I thought that they didn't want their daughter to go to pieces in front of their eyes so that's why they kept wanting me to go back. So I left. So that they didn't have to deal with me." Hermione said, her eyes tearing up.

"I .. I .. Obliviated their memory of the fight." Hermione said choking in a mix of guilt and the lump in her throat.

Draco tried not to look aghast as she said this but failed.

She looked at him and said "I said some really rude things, Draco. I hurt them so much. I couldn't leave with them thinking I hated them. I regretted everything I said to them the moment it was out of my mouth."

"You obliviated them? Again?" Draco cringed.

He remembered how livid her parents had been when they had first learned how Hermione had tampered with their memories to keep them safe during the war.

They understood that it had been done for their safety, but the Grangers' were her parents after all. They too, like her detested being told or forced to do something.

After a few tense months, they had forgiven her and forgotten about it. Hopefully. But this time was another thing altogether.

"You know they're going to be extremely upset." He said.

"I know. But I only obliviated the fight. I don't plan on retrieving that memory again. So what they don't know won't hurt them." She said.

Draco gaped at her.

Rule following, honest do - gooder Hermione Granger was going to cover up her tracks?

It almost made her look human. With flaws. Of course she was human. With her own insecurities and flaws. But actually seeing them in the open made Draco realize just how vulnerable she was.

His heart went out to her.

He stood up and walked towards her and engulfed her in a tight hug.

"I don't care. You can never do anything wrong as far as I'm concerned. As long as you're happy I'm happy." He said.

She hugged him back and when he distanced himself from her he had a determined look on his face. Hermione knew there was a 'but' coming.

"But", he said and Hermione smiled to herself, pleased at her accurate deduction. "It's time you meet your parents."

That was not what she had expected to hear.

She staggered behind to create some distance between them so that she could look at his face properly and determine that he was joking.

But he looked very serious.

"Hermione..."

"No. No Draco. You don't get to just come into my life that I've set for myself after all this time and boss me around. I spend every free second of my day with you does not mean I'm going to do whatever you say." She heaved.

"Hermione listen to me please." Draco pleaded.

"No Draco _you_ listen. I don't know what you think you want to accomplish but you're going to be gone after ten days and then I'm going to go back to being the workaholic that I always was. Nothing will have changed." Hermione said.

"Something has changed. And you know it. You're just not ready to accept it. Why then did you come back that day and write to Ginny? Why are you not fighting me on all the absurd things I'm making you do and all the places I'm making you go to with me? I'm here and you spend all that time with me because you _want_ to, not because you_ have_ to, okay. So don't tell me you're doing me a favour. And I bloody well _am_ changing things in your life. Because they _need_ changing. You're my friend Hermione and I can't see you this way. Help me help you Granger. Please don't push me away."

"You've always resented change. But it's imperative. And I won't let you just go with the flow. You know you need to see your parents. You knew you needed to write to Ginny. And you did. Can't you try the same way and meet your parents? It's the least you can do." Draco said.

Hermione knew that he wasn't going to back down.

He was Draco. Not Harry or even Ron for that matter.

Harry and Ron knew even before any argument began that it was no use arguing. Hermione always won.

So over the years they had learned to cut short argument time and relent to whatever it was that she was saying. And more often than not she was right.

But Draco was another story altogether.

Whether she was right or not, he would never let go without letting her hear a piece of his mind.

And if he thought she was wrong and needed to do something about it, he would go on and on about it till she agreed.  
>And that was how even Hermione was with him.<p>

Whenever he had a difficult choice or he was doing something wrong, she had always been there to chide him and bring him back to reality.

Short of actually holding him by the ear, Hermione had done everything to make sure that Draco always did the right thing.  
>This erupted countless fights between them and arguing matches but at the end of the day, both knew that the opposite person was telling the truth and often begrudgingly, they accepted their shortcomings.<p>

"It's always going to be this way isn't it?" She asked finally in a low voice.

"Which way?"

"This way." She said indicating to the space between them. "We are always going to chew each others' brains when we think we are doing the wrong thing."

"It's the only way I know to get you to do something." He said shrugging. "You're bloody stubborn you know that right?"

She smiled. "Like you aren't."

"I know. That's why we are going to Canberra." He said with a tone of finality.

"We?" She raised a single eyebrow.

Hot damn.

He had forgotten how hot she looked when she did that.

Focus Draco.

"Umm yeah. Well, we'll go to Canberra together but I'll wait for you at a cafe or something. You should meet them alone." Draco said.

"Yeah. I wouldn't suggest you come with me to see them. You know how they feel about you." Hermione said almost apologetically.

"I know. They hate me." Draco said.

"Draco! They don't hate you. They just don't like you much. After all, the Draco Malfoy they remember is the one who tortured and bullied their only daughter. They refuse to believe anything I say." Hermione said.

"I know. It's ok. I remember that I was the one who had told you to not bother changing their views. It's okay." Draco said sullenly.

"Draco. I was a child then. They could tell me who to be friends with and who not to. But I'm a grown woman now. They need to open their eyes. They can't dictate their misgivings upon me." Hermione said.

"Hermione. Let's leave that for another time. You have enough to discuss with them for now." Draco said.

Hermione sighed. "You're right."

Draco got up and rummaged through a drawer of hers.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

He came over and handed a quill and parchment to her.

"I believe you have a letter to write." He said smugly.

"I don't know why I let you push me around so much." She said shaking her head.

"Because you love me." He smirked.

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**So many of you'll wanted me to show Harry and Ginny's reaction!**

**I know it was short! But I hope it hit the mark!**

**And Hermione and Draco have to have their arguments don't they?**

**Both are so stubborn!**

**I hope this was an enjoyable chapter!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	25. Chapter 25

**Merci beaucoup to;**

**astaniga**  
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><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
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><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
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**I'm skipping any rambling on my part bcoz I have nothing to say as of now.**

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**Back to**

**CHAPTER 25.**

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_"Hermione ? Is that an owl?" Jean Granger asked her daughter as she entered her room and saw a grey bird fly off from the window._

_"Yes mum. I was just coming down to tell you'll something and also ask you'll for permission." Hermione said._

_"Permission? What for dear?" Jean asked._

_"To go to Diagon Alley with a friend. Mum, You remember Draco Malfoy? A boy from my class." Hermione ventured into the subject, testing the waters._

_"That rude, insolent boy with a superiority complex?" Jean asked getting angry._

_Hermione wavered._

_This was awkward now. She had been contemplating on telling her parents about her friendship with Draco since a long time._

_But it wasn't something she wanted to do via a letter._

_But gauging her mother's reaction, she wished she had just written a letter and gone against her better judgment._

_He parents had already had a prejudice against Draco especially after the 'mudblood' incident and that only deepened after she had been petrified by the basilisk due to the chamber opening, which was all Lucius Malfoy's fault._

_Her parents were pretty much informed about what happened at Hogwarts. Arthur and Molly Weasley kept in touch with the Granger's and got them updated with the wizarding world from time to time._

_Her parents were increasingly against her putting herself in constant danger and to add to that Hermione had come home every time fuming about something or the other that Malfoy had said or done._

_For the first 3 years of her school life, there was no love lost between Hermione and Draco and her parents were more than aware of that._

_She had made sure of that._

_So how was she supposed to tell them now that she was friends with the same bully who had called her names till there were tears in her eyes and had hexed her and her friends at every opportunity?_

_Of course they wouldn't believe her._

_The Granger's trusted their daughter and her judgment but actually trusting Draco Malfoy might be stretching it too far._

_"Umm. Actually mum, he's not so bad. He..."_

_"Not so bad! Hermione dear, don't you remember the times you've written us or come home crying about how unfair and mean this boy is? And besides, Arthur was telling us the other day that how his father is connected to some evil wizard. Dear, being mean is another thing but being evil is completely different altogether." Her mother explained._

_"Draco's not evil mother!" Hermione exclaimed, her voice an octave higher than what her mother would have approved of._

_"Don't use that voice child! And why are you suddenly defending him?" Her mother narrowed her eyes._

_Hermione sighed._

_"He.. He has changed mum. He doesn't mean those things anymore. He's a nice person." Hermione stuttered._

_"But his family Hermione .. What can you say about that? A person becomes what his family is at the end of the day. And frankly from what I've heard about him from you and your friends is that he's a mean, bigoted boy who doesn't hesitate to regurgitate any rubbish his equally bigoted parents will brainwash him with. After all, family always comes first and blood is thicker than water." Jean said._

_"Mum really? You're talking about blood now?" Hermione said losing her patience._

_"Not in the way the purebloods talk about it." Jean snapped._

_"You're being prejudiced mum and prejudice is prejudice. What is the difference between them and us then?" Hermione asked equally heatedly._

_"Hermione we are concerned with your safety. And such people are not the ones you should be associating with. Either way your father and I worry almost every day about you. We had no idea you were a witch. Then we came to know that you're a muggleborn witch and then we realized the dangers that pose them. I do not want you to be closer to the people who could put you in danger. What if he's only pretending to be friendly with you only to strike you at your weakest hour?" Jean asked._

_Hermione gasped. He wouldn't. Would he? Draco was not like that._

_In the few weeks she had gotten to know him, she had learned much more about him than she had ever imagined she would know. He had claimed that not even his own parents knew those things about him._

_Of course he could be a good actor._

_But how could his eyes lie? The same eyes that lit up when he saw her and the ones that crinkled with pleasure when he genuinely smiled at her in private._

_Even when he was pretending to be rude and cold towards her in front of other slytherins and Gryffindor, his insults never reached his eyes._

_Instead they pleaded her that he was sorry for all that he was saying and it was all an act._

_No. She couldn't have been so mistaken._

_No one could mask their eyes so well._

_She trusted him._

_She had known and loved her parents all her life and how long had she been acquainted with Draco for?_

_Barely few months._

_So logically her mum was right. But something inside her tugged at her heart and told her that her judgement about him was right too._

_"But mum..." She whined._

_"No buts Hermione. I need to talk to your father about this. In the meantime I forbid you to exchange letters with him. Your father and I will discuss this and let you know by dinner what we think about this." Jean said, closing the topic and Hermione's door._

_Hermione looked at her mother's retreating figure as she shut the door._

_Her parents had also shut their minds in the same way._

_Of course they had their own valid reasons, she couldn't deny but at least they could have heard her out._

_She was their daughter._

_They should have trusted her judgement._

_Her father had supported his wife in the related argument and after a heated dinner discussion that eventually led Hermione to leave her meal midway and stomp up to her room in rebellion, the Granger's had come to the decision that in no way was she allowed to associate with Draco Malfoy._

_Her father had written Arthur and Molly Weasley and asked them to talk sense into her since she seemed to consider them as second parents._

_Arthur and Molly had agreed to talk to her and promised that they would not reveal any of this to Harry and Ron. It was Hermione's secret and if she wished to share this with them then she would tell them._

_The Weasley's had agreed that it was better if Hermione stayed away from anything Malfoy. And Arthur being a member of the Order of Phoenix had held more reservation about the budding friendship._

_He worried about the muggle born witch and so unwantingly he had had to intervene and talk to Hermione about stopping her association with Draco for her own safety._

_Hermione had been livid._

_She was never the type to throw a tantrum or rebel but ever since her parents had pulled this on her, she had almost stopped talking to them._

_Until one day Draco had turned up on her doorstep with Dobby._

_He had been worried about her lack of response to his letters and luckily the Granger's were not at home._

_She had flung herself at him and in between angry dialogues she had exactly told him what the problem was._

_Contrary to what she had expected, Draco had sighed and sat down at the edge of her bed dejectedly._

_"I'm not surprised Hermione. Your parents are in all ways right about this. You should not behave this way with them." He had said softly as if for the first time realizing the implications of their unusual friendship._

_"Are you mad? How can you even say something like that?" Hermione had yelled._

_"Don't be hasty in making your judgements Hermione. What they've said is totally true. We are in the midst of war. The ministry is getting weaker day by day. I hear father talk about it all the time. He has so many visitors all day and he's constantly busy with something or the other. And I'm not entirely sure if it's good. And in all of this, you're a muggle born. The most targeted one. Your association with me will be not only a scandal but a very dangerous situation for you." Draco had explained._

_"So what you're saying is that we should forget our friendship and be back to what we were?" Hermione said coldly._

_Draco's face had adopted a pained look by now. "No.. No way Hermione. I.. I didn't mean that. I couldn't ... "_

_"Then what would you suggest?" She asked._

_After thinking for a few moments he said "I think we should continue to be friends in hiding. Our friendship just for the two of us. That way your parents won't worry and you also will escape the radar of my father and other pureblooded lunatics."_

_"Are you saying you want to hide our friendship?" Hermione raised her voice. "You're ashamed of being seen with me." She said, her cold words slicing through his skin like shards of sharp glass and she had stood up and moved away from him, leaving him with a feeling of bereftment._

_"You don't want your friends and family to know that you associate with a mudblood." She shrieked._

_"Are you even hearing yourself? Do you really believe that Hermione?" Draco had started yelling too at this point._

_He was unable to fathom how she had digressed to such a level._

_"Why else would you agree with my parents? I am ready here to risk the relationship I share with my parents arguing in your favour so that we can continue to be friends and you want to hide our friendship like a coward? So that dear perfect Draco Malfoy, pureblooded slytherin can maintain his bloody image!" She ranted._

_"Don't be ridiculous. You are such a bloody Gryffindor through and through. Courage be damned, insane levels of stupidity should be your house specialty." Draco yelled back._

_"Oh yes. Just like how cowardice and deceit should be the slytherin mantra." Hermione shot back._

_At that moment Dobby popped into the room with two cups of steaming tea._

_"Dobby brings Master Draco and miss Master Draco's secret friend some tea." He said, placing the tray on the bed between the fighting friends._

_"Dobby knows miss secret friend likes cardamom tea very much. And Master Draco likes lemongrass." Dobby said, pointing out to the respective cups._

_Hermione softened a bit and said "thank you very much Dobby but you didn't need to do this."_

_"Master Draco feels good after tea miss. And he talks nice about miss secret friend. I bring tea so miss and master can talk nice again." Dobby said with his large innocent eyes betraying the fright and sadness that it held because of the raised voices and fight that had just occurred._

_"Thank you Dobby." Draco said dismissing the elf._

_"Wait! Dobby. How did you know I like cardamom tea?" Hermione asked._

_Dobby looked apologetically in Draco's direction wondering if he had done something bad by knowing and bringing her favourite tea to her._

_"I'm very thankful Dobby. That's very thoughtful of you." Hermione said kindly, hoping that Dobby would not feel bad._

_He grinned and said. "Master Draco tells Dobby that miss secret friend loves books and loves tea with cardamom. Miss goes to sleep reading with a cup of tea. Master is many times in last week talking of miss."_

_Hermione looked towards Draco who by now was glaring at Dobby who had returned to his sad expression that meant that his master was not happy with his answer._

_Draco continued to glare at the elf and prevent meeting Hermione's eye._

_"Oh come on Draco. Give it a rest. Don't be so harsh on the poor elf. And why is he still with you? I thought Harry had freed him from your father." Hermione asked._

_"Oh miss. Dobby hates Master Malfoy. He beats and kicks and burns Dobby. But Master Draco saves Dobby many times. And plays with Dobby when he was small. Dobby only answers Hogwarts orders and in holidays answers master Draco only." Dobby piped enthusiastically._

_"Is that so?" Hermione asked kindly._

_Unable to contain herself she turned toward Dobby, "does Master Draco behave well with Dobby?"_

_Dobby flashed a wide grin and pointed at his t-shirt that reached his ankles. "Oh yes. Master also gives Dobby his favourite sleeping shirt. Master wants to give Dobby the pants even but Dobby does not like pants. Dobby feels free in shirt but tight in pants." He said wrinkling his nose causing Hermione to laugh out loud and unwantingly Draco smiled too._

_"That's wonderful Dobby." Hermione encouraged him._

_Dobby nodded crazily, now charged by the fact that not only Master Draco wanted to talk to him but also miss secret friend spoke to him._

_Master Draco was right. Miss secret friend was really nice._

_"Hims gives Dobby two more shirts." He declared proudly._

_Then he plunged his hand into the pocket of the shirt and removed a few assorted knuts and sickles. "Look miss secret friend, Dobby gets gold from Master Draco too. Master Draco is much much nicer wizard than master Malfoy."_

_Hermione almost sniffed loudly at Dobby's statements. She could not help looking amazed and she realized just then that not only did she like Draco but she respected him too. Her judgement was not wrong._

_"That's wonderful Dobby." She repeated. "Your master indeed is a nice wizard."_

_"Miss secret friend is also Mr. Harry Potter's friend?" Dobby asked, narrowing his eyes and finger on his temple as if deep in though._

_Draco and Hermione looked worried suddenly at his realization._

_"Miss must be very nice. Mr. Harry Potter too nice wizard like Master Draco. Both nice wizards talk nice to miss secret friend." Dobby said._

_"That's enough Dobby. I think we have spoken a lot today don't you?" Draco said._

_Dobby straightened up immediately._

_"Miss secret friend must remain secret, do you understand Dobby?" Draco insisted. "You must not tell anyone, absolutely anyone that miss here is friends with me. All right?"_

_Dobby nodded fervently. "Miss's secret is safe."_

_Draco looked relieved and Dobby popped out of thin air._

_There was a moment of heavy silence in the air after the talkative Dobby had left._

_"So I'm already a secret friend?" Hermione asked detachedly._

_"Hermione listen to me. You don't know anything about where I live, the people I'm surrounded by. It's safer for you. Trust me. Even if your parents had not suggested it, I would have still insisted we keep us a secret. The lesser anyone knows the better." Draco sighed._

_"Why can't you just stand up for me? If you believe yourself to be my friend why can you not just stand up for me in front of your parents like how I did?" Hermione demanded._

_Draco raked his fingers through his hair and brought his palms in front of his eyes._

_When he opened his eyes, his face looked tired from all the arguing._

_"Hermione how can you not understand? This is not some run of the mill situation where our parents don't approve of our association and we can fight and rebel against them. My father is a brainwashed pureblooded fanatic and he expects the same of me. To put it mildly, the Malfoy name and tradition is more important than family and love. He won't think twice about harming you so that I can be free of you. He will pin my refusal to follow his footsteps on you and you will be at the receiving end of his wrath. He won't even hesitate to harm your parents. My father loathes muggles. Hermione I want you to be safe. I'm ashamed to say that my father would resort to violence to separate us if he finds out." Draco said._

_Hermione stood shocked at what she had heard._

_She knew that Lucius Malfoy could be cold and non loving. But to be so cold hearted that he wouldn't even blink before harming someone was very difficult to imagine._

_But then again this was the same man who had put Tom Riddle's diary in Ginny's bag and risked her life only so that Voldemort got stronger._

_And then it hit her. Like a wall of bricks._

_Lucius Malfoy was a Voldemort supporter. And hater of muggle borns._

_And a muggle born who was his son's friend would be unacceptable. It would get too personal. It would be like an insult to his heritage._

_And he would never let anything tarnish the Malfoy name in their bigoted society._

_"Draco !" She breathed and sat down abruptly on her bed, her head swimming with all the realizations._

_Draco rushed to her side and held her straight._

_"Oh my God Draco. He would never ever let me be your friend. He would punish you and me both severely for it." Hermione stated in a panicked voice._

_Draco nodded slowly although he wished with all his heart that what she had said would actually be untrue._

_"You get it don't you?" Draco asked finally._

_She nodded weakly._

_"Do you really believe I would be ashamed of you?" Draco asked in a voice that was so low that if he wasn't currently holding her, she would have barely heard it._

_Hermione's heart wrenched at his question._

_How could she have been so stupid? So naïve?_

_How had she even thought that let alone scream it out to him?_

_She looked up into his eyes that were unfeeling at the moment and caused her own to glaze over._

_"I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry Draco. I don't know what came over me. First mum says no and then dad says no and they talk to Mr. Weasley and he's usually so nice and then he says no and warns me just like how you did and all I want is to be friends with you and you come along and say no and I ... "She rambled incoherently as her voice started hitching and gasping mixed with sobs._

_Draco hugged her and patted her back uncomfortably._

_He hadn't ever been the types to hug or comfort._

_Normally he would've looked at anyone crying with disgust and leave but this was Hermione._

_She had assaulted him with hugs whenever she had decided that he needed one._

_At first he would stand stiff like a log and slowly after a few hugs he started moulding into it and now for the first time he had initiated one._

_But he was still uncomfortable because she was crying in front of him and he didn't know one damn thing about consolation._

_"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I really am." She whispered between sniffing._

_"It's ok?" Draco said, forgetting about being angry with her for thinking that he would ever be ashamed of her._

_She dabbed her eyes gently and looked up at Draco._

_Then her eyes brightened with some realization and she clutched his arm excitedly. "Draco! You hugged! On your own! Oh this is amazing!"_

_Draco rolled his eyes at her attention span. Her usually focussed self was very flighty today._

_Even in a situation like this she could remember to realize that he had initiated the hug._

_Hermione had made an insane promise to herself to 'sort' Draco out. And that somehow included increasing his emotional range._

_And hugging and being hugged apparently was a big deal._

_Then getting serious she remembered all the awful things she had yelled at him in the heat of the argument._

_Cringing she said, "All the things I said ... Draco I'm so sorry I didn't mean them. Nothing. None of it. I was just so upset."_

_"It's really okay Hermione. I think I understand. You don't think we are doing anything wrong by being friends and you don't want to hide. You don't want to sneak around and lie to meet me and you don't think it should be a secret. I get that. But this is about safety Hermione. And I will never ever let our friendship come in the way of your safety. Your life is more important than any of this." Draco said seriously._

_"Our friendship is important too." Hermione pouted._

_"It is. But if you're alive then our friendship is intact. I really won't have much use of it if you're in danger or worse threatened because of it." Draco said matter of factly._

_Hermione sighed._

_"What a mess. My parents dislike you. Yours hate me. And I can't believe I actually would be endangering both our lives by being friends. When did children's friendships get so complicated?" She said sadly._

_"I'm sorry for that. But I can't deal with not having you as a friend. Cutting you out completely from my life isn't even an option. So we'll have to suffice with the secrecy." Draco concluded._

_Hermione nodded understandingly._

_"I won't be able to write to you." She said sadly. "And there's still an entire month left before we start school."_

_Draco smiled widely at that and she thought he had gone mad now._

_Then he pulled out a small diary from his pocket. It was so delicate and sweet, it fit in the palm of her hand._

_He handed it to her and said, "This is for you."_

_She looked at it quizzically and opened it._

_It was blank._

_Suddenly the words 'hello there' came on the paper._

_She jumped and looked at Draco, who was holding a quill and a similar looking diary in his hand._

_"Oh my! Draco! Don't tell me, it can't be! Is this a two way diary?" Hermione asked jumping excitedly._

_Draco nodded, pleased by her reaction._

_"I figured we'd need this. We don't need any owls now." Draco said smugly._

_Hermione flung herself onto him again. "This is amazing. Thank you."_

_"I couldn't spend a long lonely month at the manor without your letters. And besides there's always danger of my letters being intercepted. This is safe. I've charmed it so that only we can see the words on it." Draco said._

_"That's very clever." Hermione exclaimed._

_"Thanks." Draco said. "I think I should leave. Mother must be getting suspicious."_

_"Draco?" Hermione stopped him._

_"How does Dobby know about my favourite tea?" Hermione asked._

_He looked taken aback by the question. And then he looked at his feet and answered, "I may have told him."_

_Hermione smiled. "And do you say nice things about me to him?" She teased._

_"Dobby thinks nice things about everybody." Draco defended himself._

_"Really?" Hermione raised one eyebrow mocking him._

_Draco was quite taken by her one eyebrow raising. So far his mother had done that and she only did that when she wanted to silently reprimand him._

_Seeing the same action in this context was a fresh change and he seemed to like Hermione's eyebrow raise much more._

_"Whatever." He mumbled._

_"He likes you. You're kind to him. That's extremely sweet of you." Hermione said._

_"One more thing to hide from father. I don't know what will anger him more. The fact that I'm friends with you or that Dobby chose me as master after freeing himself from his clutches." Draco said._

_Hermione laughed. "Well then we'll just work towards keeping both secrets."_

_Draco smiled. "I should go."_

_"Yes. Right." Hermione said._

_"Bye then." Draco said hesitantly._

_"Bye. I'll write." Hermione said._

_"Me too. I'll reply." Draco said stupidly._

_"Okay." Hermione said._

_"Right then. Goodbye." Draco said and called for Dobby who arrived within a fraction of a second._

_"Come dobby let's go." Draco said._

_"Goodbye miss." Dobby said and Hermione waved at him._

_Dobby held Draco's hand and got ready when Draco suddenly said, "one moment Dobby."_

_He walked up to Hermione and stood close to her, looking deep into her eyes till she thought she was being hypnotized._

_"I could never ever be ashamed of you." He said his steel grey irises boring into hers. "If there's one thing I'm proud of, it's my decision to be your friend. Don't ever doubt that." He stopped as if he wasn't quite done. "Please." He added almost pleading._

_Hermione could only nod vaguely and look into his eyes and before she could blink, Dobby and Draco had disappeared._

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**Whoa!**

**Full chapter flash! this is my longest chapter ever! hope you'll like !**

**Long one but an important one. Laying the base of the story!**

**Please get back to me with feedback!**

**I love hearing from you'll!**

**Thanks for reading.**

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	26. Chapter 26

**Thank you;**

**Daisy Seary**  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>WisperMoon1999<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>T. A. Raskelt<strong>  
><strong>cutiepiehp<strong>  
><strong>Melly2014<strong>  
><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
><strong>cupcake23<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>Dramione4evr<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>

**For your feedback!**

**I'm glad that you all liked the flash.**

**This argument paves way for many other things in the story.**

**Also I'm aware that 25 chapters are done and it may seem that the story is going at turtle pace but please bear with me and stay with me!**

**I know all of you are dying for them to kiss already but sadly I have to say it's going to be a long time! *sigh***

**It is angst for a reason!**

**Please don't hate me!**

**Hope the plot distracts you for the time being ;)**

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**CHAPTER 26.**

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"Granger?" Draco called out again.

No response.

This time he shook her shoulder and called out again. "Granger?"

Hermione started and looked at him vacantly.

"Your parents' house." Draco answered. "It's here right?"

Hermione turned away from him to take in her surroundings.

Familiar houses came into her view till her gaze rested on a handsome 2 storey home that had an impressive garden.

Her mother had loved tending to plants and flowers.

That habit of hers had surfaced even in her obliviated state and her new home had become a playground for her to practice her gardening.

"You've zoned out again Hermione." Draco repeated frustrated.

"Oh umm. Right. I'm sorry Draco. Just going through things in my head." Hermione said non commitedly.

"Over analysing as usual." Draco made a statement, trying hard not to roll his eyes.

"Oh please. I've not seen them for over a year. Of course I'm going to stall." Hermione admitted.

"You've stalled ever since you wrote that letter. Come on now. They know you're coming. They've probably even made all your favourite foodstuff also." Draco joked.

Hermione scowled.

"Do you want me to come with you?" He asked seriously.

She shook her head. "As much as I would really appreciate the support, it's not safe for you." She chuckled.

"Besides, this is something I need to do alone. They don't remember why I left suddenly so I've got to be careful with my words." She said.

"Okay then. So go on. I'll stay here till I see you go into that door. I don't trust you enough." He smirked. "Then we'll meet at the cafe by noon."

She gulped and nodded.

"Okay then. Here goes." She said to herself.

"Good luck Granger." Draco whispered.

She squeezed his hand in acknowledgement and looked forward and started walking towards the house.

Draco kept his gaze on her till he saw her stand in front of the door.

He looked at her unblinkingly and from where he was he could practically feel her hesitation.

Yet, slowly she raised her hand to ring the door bell.

A few testy seconds later, the door was opened by none other than Mr. Granger himself.

Mrs. Granger too hurried behind her husband, but before she could really make sure if it was her daughter at their doorstep, Mr. Granger had enveloped his only child in a fierce hug.

Mrs. Granger patted both their shoulders placatingly and Mr. Granger gingerly separated himself from Hermione so that they could go in and shut the door.

Draco released a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Okay. She's in now. He said to himself. Time to wait.

He apparated on the spot to a little wizarding cafe where Hermione and he had decided to meet after she was done with her parents. He was going to be joined by Katherine and Matt, who had become rather close over the few days.

Katherine had no idea why Hermione was here but she had readily agreed to keep Draco Company while he waited for her.

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"Hermione! My baby. I can't believe I'm finally seeing you. Don't you ever do that again to us do you understand?" Jean Granger told her while holding her in a hug tighter than her dad was capable of.

Both her parents were weepy by now and Hermione couldn't ebb her tears as well.

Seeing them after a year in this state had weakened her resolve and she found herself crying with her parents.

"We've missed you so much dear. Harry is always worried sick about you. He keeps calling us in case we've heard from you." Mr. Granger said.

"I'm sorry mum, dad." Hermione choked. "I really am. I didn't mean to disappear on you'll. It's just... I needed some time alone." Hermione said.

"Of course dear. We won't ever understand why you would want to be alone but we respect your decision. Not hearing from you unnerved us and you know your dad, he can only imagine the worst." Mrs. Granger said.

Hermione looked at her dad and squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry dad, I'm fine. I really am. I really am sorry to have put you'll through this."

"It's nothing Hermione. We just want you to be happy. Whether it's here or in England, it doesn't matter. As long as you are happy we are happy." Mr. Granger replied.

And so Hermione continued talking to her parents as if nothing had happened and they were meeting casually over breakfast.

As Draco had predicted, Mrs. Granger had prepared all of Hermione's favourite dishes and she kept fretting over how weak and thin she had become, resulting in feeding her till she was full and couldn't breathe.

"Mum! Enough. I swear I won't be able to breathe without help if I have another morsel." Hermione complained panting.

"Nonsense dear. Don't they give you meal breaks at your hospital? Look at you. Thin as ever." Jean grumbled.

Hermione laughed. "Actually I'm a victim of those retail ready to eat rubbish mother. I'm afraid it hasn't done much for my health and appearance. But I'm better now. You should've seen me 3 weeks ago. You would have been shocked. But now since... "Her voice trailed off as she realised that she was going to mention Draco unwittingly.

He parents were looking at her as if she was going to continue.

"Since what dear?" Her mother prompted.

Hermione sighed. There was no point hiding anything now.

Her relationship with her parents was anyways on rocky ground. Not like mentioning Draco could make it worse.

She took a deep breath and prayed that after all these years her parents would go easy and keep aside their prejudices.

"Mum, you know I've been living alone all this while. No one knew where I lived. Not you'll, not Harry or Ginny. I've not kept in touch with anyone. Then one day I learned that Draco Malfoy was injured in Sydney and he was my patient." She paused here to look at her parents to gauge their reaction.

"Hermione, this Draco Malfoy, are you still friends with him?" Jean Granger asked guardedly.

Hermione sighed.

"Mum, I told you the same thing when I sent him my wedding invite. He has always been my good friend and will continue to be. He and Harry and Ginny were the ones who incessantly sent me letters irrespective of the fact that I refused to return any of them. And when he finally found out that I was his Healer, he was ecstatic that he had managed to locate me. He hasn't left since then and he's under the impression that I need someone by my side to bring the old Hermione back."

"But Hermione ..." Jean started.

"Mum, we've gone over this." Hermione said tiredly. "Draco was never a death eater. His father was. And he got what he deserved. Draco was in fact a spy for the order just like Snape was. I am in no danger whatsoever from anyone and least of all him. Voldemort died years ago mum."

"But he was rotten to you in school Hermione." Mrs. Granger argued weakly.

"In school mum. And not all the time. I tried telling you years ago that he had changed but you refused to listen. I need you to trust me mum." Hermione said.

"Jean. I think Hermione's right. This Draco boy, seems like he risked his life being a double agent. He must have some good in him. And he seems to care so much about our Hermione. He didn't leave her after he found her. And the fact that he writes her without her replying means he really cares about her." Mr. Granger said.

Hermione beamed at her father. She was so glad that he understood her.

Mrs. Granger too was wavering in her opinions. But she still was very miffed by the fact that the boy who had been the sole cause of Hermione's hatred and fury for the first years of her school life had in fact now become a close friend.

"Mum?"Hermione said softly. "I had written many letters to you'll. Which I couldn't get myself to post. I used to pick up the phone to call you'll often, only to chicken out at the last moment. I couldn't face you'll after how I left last time. Draco yelled at me and gave it to me. He didn't baby me about this but confronted me and pushed me into coming here today. He even stood at the corner to make sure I entered this house."

Mrs. Granger was dabbing the corners of her eyes with her handkerchief now.

"God knows when I'd have gathered the courage to meet you'll. He's the reason I'm here today. Surely he can't be that bad?" Hermione asked.

"Is that true?" Mr. Granger asked in a dangerous tone.

Hermione looked up at her father, surprised at the sudden anger in his voice and nodded weakly.

"Then what the hell is he doing outside?" He yelled boisterously. "Where are your manners? Call him inside."

Hermione looked at him incredulously and all three of them burst out laughing.

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It had been 30 minutes since Katherine had left. She had an early shift and she said goodbye to Draco and Matt.

"So mate. Practice starts again in a week. I have no idea where we'll be practising next month. Do you?" Matt asked Draco.

"None." Draco replied. "What are the chances of us practising here again? Since last practice got cut short because of me, I mean."

Matt grinned at his quidditch buddy. "You don't want to leave Sydney, do you? I take it that this indeed is The Hermione Granger that took up a lot of your thinking time and may I add lost you quite a few girlfriends?"

Draco just glared at Matt before continuing. "Whatever. I think I'll still need to stay here for a bit. She needs me. I may have to petition for leave."

"Wow mate. I didn't you were that serious. What's the issue by the way?" Matt inquired.

Draco sighed. "I don't think it's my story to tell mate. But she's been really down for a long time and I've finally found her. I'm not letting go till I'm sure she's fine."

Matt looked at him in the eye and after a moment he said, "Are you sure buddy? Because from where I'm sitting, you need her as much as she does you. I don't know the dynamics but there's something between you'll that goes way back."

"I uh... What shite Matt. It's nothing of that sort. She's my best friend. Has been for years. She's going through a tough time and I just want to be there for her." Draco said.

"Are you sure you don't want to be there with her?" Matt's question rang in his ears.

"Look Matt, I don't know what bloody impression you have in that thick head of yours but whatever it is, it's utter crap right?" Draco said.

Matt laughed. "Fine. Can't blame me though. You're a great friend then. Bi weekly letters for a mere friend is touching. I don't ever remember you writing to anyone ever."

"So? I had no way to contact her. Those letters were the only way I could be in touch with her." Draco defended himself.

"Okay Draco. Fine. I'm not saying anything more on this." Matt conceded. "Now shall we order lunch or are we waiting for that pretty Healer of yours?"

"I heard someone call me pretty?" Hermione piped from behind Matt.

Matt started but put on a charming smile as he got up and pulled a chair for Hermione.

"Well, only stating the obvious, my lady" Matt said and Hermione and Draco both rolled their eyes.

"Why thank you then." She smiled.

And her smile reached her eyes which were surprisingly free of the worry and guilt that were etched into them in the morning.

Draco was pleasantly surprised to see her in this mood.

He was prepared to tell Matt that he should probably leave them alone for lunch since he had thought that Hermione might have needed to vent. But Hermione looked absolutely fresh and happy.

"I feel like some wine." Hermione declared under her breath as she perused the menu.

Draco's eyes almost popped out of his sockets.

"Right now ?" He spluttered. "And _you're_ asking for wine?"

"Yes Malfoy. Why is that so surprising?" Hermione challenged.

"You tell me." Draco mumbled under his breath.

Matt laughed. "Well that's great. Any time is a good time for some wine. I'm going to check their collection then. Do you mind Hermione ?"

"Sure go ahead. I'd prefer white." Hermione answered.

Matt nodded and left.

Draco looked at her while she was still checking the menu.

"What?" She asked without looking up.

"What what? You know perfectly well what I want to hear." Draco said.

"Malfoy I'm not a seer. How can I know if you don't tell me?" Hermione smirked.

"Are you fine? Do you want to talk? I could get rid of Matt if you want privacy." Draco offered.

"Draco! That's so rude of you. Poor bloke kept you company. Least you can do is to buy him lunch. I'm perfectly fine with him being here. Where is Katherine though?" Hermione inquired.

"She left. You were late and her shift was starting so she had to leave. She said she'd meet you later tonight at your night shift." Draco answered.

Hermione nodded.

"So you really don't mind Matt being here?" Draco asked again.

"No really. I'm very happy Draco. Everything went so well. I could give you the details later. But I'm so stoked right now, I could sing." Hermione said.

Draco laughed. "Please don't. You know that you can do everything perfectly. But quidditch and singing is something you'd better leave alone."

Hermione pouted. "You're just jealous."

"Yeah right." Draco said.

"You can't sing to save a life either." Hermione argued.

"Agreed. But at least I don't go around threatening people that I'm going to start singing." Draco continued laughing.

Hermione fake scowled.

"Fine. Laugh all you want right now. I'll wonder where it went when I tell you what I'm going to tell you." Hermione said smugly.

Draco stopped laughing instantly at her words and paled slightly.

"Merlin. You sure know how to make a bloke nervous." He said.

"Well, I'm not kidding." Hermione said in the same smug tone.

"What is it?" Draco asked.

"My parents have you called you home for dinner!" She said victoriously.

He paled furthermore and his eyes widened and Hermione continued to smirk as she witnessed his discomfort.

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**Happy Hermione is fun!**

**Okay I want white wine too!**

**Aren't you'll glad she made peace with her parents?**

**And they're fine with Draco now!**

**But how's Draco going to be around them? Well, that's for another time now.**

**Now that Draco has helped Hermione make peace with her parents, who's next in line?**

**It's an easy guess but let me know what you'll think!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	27. Chapter 27

**Thank you;**

**WisperMoon1999**

**cutiepiehp**

**SaruDM**

**mihika**

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**DesereaFlare** - who is the _**200th reviewer!**_ Thank you !

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**Wow! This story has touched 200! I thank every reviewer for getting me here!**

**There was a delay in the posting of this chapter but I had an 8 hour long exam and the prep etc left me quite exhausted.**

**But I'm done and first thing after dinner I'm finishing this chapter so I can put it up ASAP!**

**Happy reading!**

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**CHAPTER 27.**

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_**HERMIONES'S POV :**_

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"Enlighten me again as to why we have returned to this store Draco." I sighed, defeated.

We had come to the home furnishings store again and I had just finished a very long emergency shift and was in no mood to shop with Draco.

The man was a wizard for Godric's sake! Why he wouldn't just conjure what he needed was beyond me.

Playing Quidditch apparently paid him with more money than he could spend.

And poor me. I was the victim who had to accompany him.

Draco even had a privileged customer point's card for this store! He seemed to be taking his rented flat very seriously. I wonder if he wants to buy it.

"Draco!" I called out again, irritated to find him engrossed in a catalogue that showed God only knows what.

"Sodding housewife he's become." I muttered under my breath and dragged my tired feet towards him and the over enthusiastic salesman who thought it was imperative to gesticulate his every word.

"Draco!" I whined like a kid, very tempted to stomp my feet. "Let's go-o-o-o."

"One moment Hermione. I'm looking at a fantastic piece of lampshade here. The bulb changes colours too, look!" Draco said excitedly.

I gave him a semi weirded out, semi disgusted look that screamed 'you're a wizard! Muggle colour changing lampshades shouldn't be a cause for excitement.'

But Draco refused to even acknowledge whether I was looking or not and he got busy with the catalogue again.

I rolled my eyes. This was going to prove difficult. I couldn't even disapparate in a jiffy since we were surrounded by muggles.

I really really wanted to pull Draco by his gorgeous shampoo commercial worthy platinum blond hair and drag him home.

Hmmm.

His hair was the same ever since I could remember. Only the length had increased slightly, giving it volume and he had this shock of hair that covered his forehead and sometimes fell on his eyes if he wasn't careful.

Like right now. I bet he was eyeing the catalogue with only his left eye since the right one was partially covered by his hair and he was too engrossed to move it.

I had an inexplicable urge to reach out and clear his line of vision and maybe check out the texture of his hair.

I could almost imagine how it would feel. I think my fingers had committed it to memory. But they were itching to feel them again.

I could envisage his irritated look after I had played with his hair and it was standing in all possible directions.

He would run his own fingers through it like a comb and one pat down and it all would fall in the same smooth way that it had always been.

Sigh. I envied him. I wish my hair would be so obedient.

Suddenly, I found myself in front of Draco, with my hand raised and in front of his face.

This got his attention and he looked at me quizzically.

The salesman gulped and paled, probably thinking I was about to slap Draco.

I jolted from my reverie and looked at my outstretched hand, feeling extremely foolish.

Very very foolish.

Stupid Hermione.

That's why I should stop talking to myself in my mind.

I quickly brushed a lock of his hair as if there was some dust stuck on it and I was doing him a service by shaking it off.

But in that one nanosecond that my fingers came in contact with his hair, I had to harness all my self control towards letting go and bringing my hand back to myself.

"Some lint out there. Probably from the cloth all around." I explained lamely.

"Oh. Thanks!" He smiled warmly and continued turning the pages, this time involving me and showing me 3 different lamps between which he was confused.

I tuned out his chatter and immediately regretted it.

A mental bulldozer went over me as I realized the train of thoughts that had just passed through my head.

I had spent a good 5 minutes thinking about his hair! Merlin!

And if that was not enough, I had fantasized about running my fingers through it!

I blame it all on the exhaustion.

And the fatigue.

And my tiredness.

Also my lethargy.

Yeah. I could use every word generated by the thesaurus but still the guilt or rather the mystery behind my not so very appropriate thoughts would still remain unsolved.

How could you? It's preposterous. I argued with myself.

I was just being appreciative. I retaliated.

Oh Yeah? Even words can show appreciation. No need to want to get all touchy feely, another voice said.

Why not? Not like I haven't done it before.

Yes, but times were different then. Maybe after a point even the intentions were different.

I agreed to that point.

Was it happening all over again? Or was this just a phase?

It had all been in the past so long ago that it was almost as if it never existed. But it had. It very much had.

Even though sometimes I had to convince myself that it had been real. But today I felt it resurface again.

Did that mean it had never disappeared?

I was so confused. And tired.

I had been seeing him day in day out for a month now. He was the only company I had outside of the hospital.

It was only natural to start thinking this way, wasn't it?

I blame it on the proximity.

And the tiredness, let's not forget.

If I was coherent, I'd probably be feeling a lot different.

But I doubted that.

Old habits die hard.

And Draco Malfoy hadn't been a habit.

At one time, he had been an addiction.

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_**GENERAL POV:**_

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Hermione had completely stopped her whining and was standing in the same position with a shocked look on her face.

The thoughts that were swimming in her head were enough to make her go insane.

She desperately wanted to stop analysing and over thinking but it wasn't helping.

To add to that Draco was ignoring her. Well not really ignoring, but he was busy comparing lamps and she really needed him to talk his usual rubbish to her to distract her from her thoughts.

Where is his incessant appetite for conversation when you need it? She thought ruefully.

Suddenly fingers snapped in front of her. "Hermione? Hello? Earth to!" Draco was calling out.

"Huh? What's it you were saying?" Hermione asked, looking attentive now.

"I'm saying that you need to get lamps for your flat too. It's always so dark and dreary at night. I think these twin shades by the coffee table will do. What do you say?" Draco asked.

"Hmm? Yeah. Maybe. Its fine I guess." Hermione mumbled.

"Aren't you going to argue about how you don't need any lamps?" Draco asked looking surprised that she had agreed so soon.

Hermione sighed loudly. "Is it going to matter? You're going to do exactly what you want. I may as well save my fast depleting energy and agree now."

Draco grinned. "Fast learner." He said.

Hermione didn't even bother to comment.

"Okay. Since you're in such an agreeable mood today, I think we should go a step further. Let's go check something for that's second bedroom of yours." Draco said nonchalantly.

"What? Why? I use only my bedroom. Why would I want to do up the spare one?" Hermione asked, waking up a little.

"For guests." Draco said simply as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.

"Guests?" Hermione scoffed. "You're my only 'guest' and thankfully you have your own flat. I'm not wasting time and money for a room that's not even functional."

"Who said it's going be non functional? Your visitors will use it. And don't you want to be a good host and set them up in a nicely done up room?" Draco asked.

"Why am I having visitors?" Hermione asked feebly. "And pray tell, who are these secret visitors and guests?"

"Why, Potter and Weaselette of course!" Draco said with an air of obviousness.

Hermione gaped. Actually gaped.

"Jaw up Granger. Don't look at me like I've just said something scandalous." Draco smirked.

"You ... You ... Insufferable prat. Who the hell do you think you are? How dare you insinuate something that I haven't even thought about till now let alone go ahead and make plans for it?" Hermione yelled.

Draco rolled his eyes. "And here I thought you were being agreeable."

"Don't roll your eyes at me Malfoy." Hermione hollered, all lethargy forgotten.

Merlin! That woman had some super feisty fighting gene that was always on alert.

"I'm only suggesting Hermione. In case you wake up one day and feel that you really want to see them, then what?" Draco asked.

"Then I will bloody conjure a bed and all that's required." Hermione whispered furiously even though the over enthusiastic salesman had hurriedly retreated to his desk when Hermione and Draco had started arguing.

How could one go from almost endearing to so infuriating in such a short time? Hermione found herself chastising herself for even thinking for a moment how carefree and innocent and adorable? He looked a while ago.

"Hmmm. So you admit that you wouldn't mind them visiting?" Draco said with a lopsided half smile.

"What? How did you conclude that?" Hermione asked, taken aback.

"Well, you didn't oppose my suggestion. You could have said that I won't want them to come or something like that. But instead you came up with an alternative to their living arrangements." Draco explained. "Shows you're open to the idea."

Hermione gave him an 'I can't believe you' look that held his gaze stubbornly for a while.

She sighed loudly after a minute."I'm tired Draco. Please. Not now. Can we just pack those damn lamps and get going?" Hermione pleaded.

Draco nodded, not pressing further, knowing that he had somewhat succeeded in trying to get her to meet the Potters'.

Hermione wanted to seethe but she couldn't.

Maybe it was the exhaustion or the lack of will.

Or maybe it was the fact that lately she had been missing Harry and Ginny a lot more. She had also been re-reading a few of Ginny's letters.

Maybe Draco had noticed this and that's how he had come to the consensus that she should meet them.

She had met her parents. And honestly it had not been that bad. In fact, it was great.

They had spoken once more on the telephone in the week after she had gone to see them. And she had felt good catching up with them.

They were giving her the space she needed and she was reaching out to them within her comfort zone.

Maybe it was time for the next step.

Harry would either way know that Hermione had visited the Grangers'. He checked up on them often.

And Hermione had not said anything to them about lying to Harry.

She knew that if even he knew exactly where she was at this point, he wouldn't ever come unless she asked him to. Only to allow her her space.

But the moment she called him, there was no doubt that he would leave everything and rush to her.

A longing stirred deep within her. One that comes from wanting something you haven't had for long.

And she wanted her best friends back.

All of them.

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**Yeah!**

**Umm. That's it for today!**

**Please tell!**

**How was the Hermione pov? More on that later!**

**And Harry and Ginny in the picture again!**

**I love them!**

**Hope you liked!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	28. Chapter 28

**Thanks to;**

**Shivvv**  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>WisperMoon1999<strong>  
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><strong>ChelseyJ<strong>  
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><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>southerncharmer88<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>

**For their reviews!**

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**CHAPTER 28.**

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"That was delicious Draco. You really should let me cook from now on. I eat entirely too much when you cook." Hermione said with great difficulty in between shallow breaths.

"Please. We all know about your schedule. If meals were left up to you, we would be having only eggs." Draco scoffed.

"At least I would not be a glutton. I can hardly breathe." Hermione said as she leaned in and snuggled next to Draco.

Draco shuffled his body to accommodate her and re-arranged the blanket so her toes would be covered.

"It'll pass. Relax." He said wisely.

"I've never come up here. It's beautiful." Hermione said softly, trying not to cause any abdominal movement.

"You've lived here for more than a year and you're telling me that you never checked out the roof of one of the tallest buildings in the area?" Draco asked, astonished.

Hermione shook her head.

"It's the next best thing to Quidditch. Since I can't fly, being somewhere high is a close second." Draco said.

Hermione shifted her face so that she could see him now.

He still looked the same as she had remembered. Well, almost the same. His hair was longer and his eyes had laugh lines.

Something that was nonexistent in school. He had always had pale smooth complexion and not one blemish nor wrinkle.

Except in the 6th year when he was plagued by the task of killing Dumbledore.

But his face had assumed a more natural, human like quality now and he had a 2 day stubble.

Hermione wondered how he had controlled himself from shaving. He usually preferred to be completely clean shaven.

So many things about him had changed since she had seen him last. But still he was innately so Draco.

All the same and yet different. For the better.

Without thinking she rubbed her thumb tentatively along his chin feeling the growth of hair under her skin.

It didn't change his appearance much, just gave him a rugged look.

And Merlin knows that pale white Draco Malfoy could do with looking a bit rugged.

"Hermione? Is something there on my chin?" Draco asked softly.

"Hmmm?" She mused, her hand still in place.

"My chin?" He repeated.

She turned her eyes to look at him directly and instantly his intense mercury silver eyes hit her with silent questions.

Eyes that had stood out to be cold and insulting at one time were so warm and safe right now.

She could see herself in them and nothing like the usual drowning in someone's eyes happened to her. But she did manage to see layers and layers of their life in them.

Often in the past when his lips were saying something, his eyes had always spoken the truth.

With Draco, she had long ago learned that he many times said things he didn't mean. And to read between the lines or to actually decipher what really went on in his head, all she had to do was to see his eyes.

Just like she was doing now.

And what she saw was hope. Patience. Affection. Serenity. And contentedness.

Her heart swelled with love for him. All he had done for the entirety of his break was to follow her and make sure she was living her life and not wasting it away.

He was almost babysitting her and had yet not shown any impatience or irritation. And Merlin knows she had been difficult at times.

But he was as stubborn as her if not more and he wouldn't ever back down.

Inspite of doing this everyday he still managed to be so peaceful and content.

As if sitting on a blanket snuggled next to her was everything he had ever wanted.

"Hermione?" Draco asked again.

She heard him and tore herself away from his eyes. "I was noticing your stubble. Since when did you start keeping stubbles?"

"Oh that?" Draco relaxed. "I just got lazy."

"Lazy? Malfoy all you have to do is wake up late, have the coffee I've made and roam around the city till I meet up with you. Surely you have enough time to shave?"

"Yeah I know. Stop lecturing. Let's say I'm trying out a new look." Draco said.

Hermione rolled her eyes and dropped her head on his shoulder and snaked her arm through his.

She heard him breathe a long sigh of contentment.

It had been really long since they had spent quality time with each other. The last being before her wedding.

She had missed him. A lot. She knew he had to go. She had made peace with it too.

But sitting here with him she realised just how much she had missed him. And she was glad to have him back.

She was really content right now in the present next to him. And his body language suggested the same thing.

It was just like old times. Before it got all messed up in between.

"What are you thinking?" Draco asked suddenly. "You're awfully quiet."

She stopped mid thought and started thinking of an answer. She didn't really want to tell him what she was thinking.

It would probably just open a can of worms, though she doubted it. Draco was never the one for confrontations. But she didn't want to risk it yet. The moment was too serene to be disrupted.

She wasn't sure of what the thoughts meant to her itself so she did what she had done in the past, pushed it behind and kept it there.

"I think it's a good look. Brings some colour to your ashen face." She said.

"I do not have an ashen face." Draco said indignantly.

"See?" Hermione sighed. "I just complimented you on your stubble and all you could register was ashen face. No value for compliments."

"Oh... Uh... Hermione! You know how I hate to be so pale. It's a blasted Malfoy gene thing. You know it's a touchy subject for me." Draco insisted.

Hermione laughed. "You are so vain Drums!"

Draco immediately stopped laughing and looked at her intently.

She too stopped laughing as soon as the words left her mouth.

"You know, you've not called me that in years." Draco breathed.

"I know." She said equally softly.

"I hated that nick name." He laughed nervously. "But it sounded so good when you used to say it."

Hermione smiled slightly. "I used to think Draco or Malfoy was so overused. I had to come up with my own name for you. Something only I could call you."

"Yeah. And what you come up with? Drums! Ridiculous really!" Draco said.

"Oh admit it. You loved it." Hermione said airily.

"I did." Draco relented. "Because you came up with it. How could I not like it? You poured every emotion you had into calling me that. It sounded so nice when you would call me that."

Hermione smiled. "I knew you secretly loved It."

"How come you called me that suddenly? After so long?" Draco asked.

"I don't know. You know when I get carried away I call you Drums." Hermione said.

"I love it." Draco repeated feelingly.

"You better." She said.

Draco snaked his free arm around her waist to pull her closer. "I loved the possessiveness you displayed though. Only you were allowed to call me that remember?"

"Who else would call you by that name? No one knew we were friends let alone on nick name basis." Hermione said.

"Remember when Pansy read a note you had written for me once and you called me Drums? She went on about how cute it was and took it on herself to call me that too." Draco said disgusted. "It's a good thing you had not signed that note. Explaining to Pansy why Hermione Granger was writing to me would have been tiring."

Hermione laughed. "Yeah. You cringed every time she called you that."

"Yeah but you got so angry every time she preened 'Drums'. You almost wanted to punch her nose too." Draco said.

"I know. She infuriated me to no end. Had gotten herself declared your girlfriend." Hermione seethed.

"Oi! Relax. I fake broke up with her remember? And also revoked her name calling rights." Draco said.

"Thank Merlin. I swear I would have hexed her otherwise." Hermione said.

"That would have been just precious." Draco laughed.

They sat there snuggled up and warm and laughed heartily for some more time over Hogwarts memories.

Their laughter died out after a while and they continued to sit silently in each other's presence, not needing to articulate.

Hermione had been alone for so long and this new closeness was refreshing. She would have never admitted that earlier but now that Draco was here, she was glad.

After a few minutes she spoke again.

"Weren't you supposed to join the team again today?" She asked.

"Yes." He said.

"Then? Why are you still here?" Hermione queried.

"I'm not leaving Hermione. Not till I want to. Which might be never. I love Australia." He said.

"Draco ..."

"What Hermione? I've just got you back. Merlin knows those 3 years without you were nothing like the last month has been."

"But Draco this is your career we are talking about. Your vacation is over. And you can always visit."

"No. I don't feel like. I've just taken an extension on my leave. It's no big deal really. I almost have 2 years leave pending. I never took days off often." Draco said.

"You don't have to stop your life because of me Draco, I'm fine. Much better now since you've been here." She tried to reason with him.

"I'm not only doing this for you Hermione. It's more for me. I know you're better. But I'm not. Not knowing where you were for so long hasn't been easy. Now that I do, I can't let go so soon. Anyway I'll hardly be able to pay attention on the game with all my thoughts on you. Let me be with you for a while longer." He said.

Hermione found her eyes moistening.

He knew that she hated being treated like a project. But she was surprised to hear that he needed to be here for his own sake more than for her's. Which really warmed her heart.

She decided then that she wouldn't force him or bother him about his extended leave.

If he wanted to spend his time here he could.

And truth be told she was dreading his departure. That coupled with missing Harry and Ginny had made her very emotional in the past few days.

Now that she had established the contact, going back to her old life would be very difficult.

"I've missed you Draco. And I'm really glad that you're here now." She said hugging him close.

"You have no idea." He said under his breath as he hugged her back.

"You know what?" She asked.

"Hmmm?"

"I think I want to meet Harry. Ginny as well." She said nervously.

Draco took her by the shoulders and there was an unmistakable excitement in his eyes. "Really?"

She nodded slowly.

He laughed. "I never thought I'd ever be so excited at the prospect of you meeting Potter. And this is all your fault Granger."

Hermione laughed. "You better behave yourself in front of them."

"I'm always well behaved." He scoffed. "It's him you need to tell."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Look if you don't give me your word I won't call them."

"No. Fine. Okay. You have my word." He scowled.

"Good." She said satisfied. "I believe we have a room to furnish."

Draco grinned. "We do!"

"Are you sure they'll come?" Hermione asked nervously.

"Are you mad? They'll be ready on one foot to come. I bet they won't be able to even wait for international apparition permit. But he's Harry Potter. I bet he can pull a few strings and speed up the process." Draco said.

She bit her lip. "I hope so. I think I'll write them first and tell them."

"Yeah. That's a plan." Draco said.

His enthusiasm started rubbing off on her and she found herself oddly light and welcoming of this new decision.

The more she discussed this with Draco, the more she realized how much she was actually looking forward to meeting her old friends.

She rested her head on his shoulder again. "Thank you." She told him.

"What for?" He inquired.

"For never giving up."

**.**

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**.**

Harry Potter stood in the middle of his kitchen with a letter in his hand.

'Harry and Ginny Potter' was written over it in neat, familiar writing.

He just stood there staring at it as if trying to make sure he really was holding it.

"Did you get...?" Ginny stopped midway when she saw her husband pointlessly standing.

"Oh for Godric's sake Harry, what are you doing? I send you to get me one piece of chocolate and..."

Harry looked up at his wife.

"What's wrong Harry?" Ginny asked sounding worried.

He extended his arm as she took the letter from him.

_Dearest Harry and Ginny,_

_I'm truly sorry for not replying to your last letter. I got so busy and frankly I'm new at replying._

_But I think this letter will pretty much make up for it._

_I'm not going to ask how you are doing or tell you how I'm doing because I have something better in mind._

_Of course I'm getting ahead of myself and assuming that the both of you_ _will go along with it. I'm hoping you will._

_I know it's too much to ask since Harry would be busy with his job and Ginny is pregnant, but luckily she can still travel up until the 7th month so shouldn't be a problem for her._

_I've started to ramble, have I not?_

_Oh dear. I'll get to the point._

_What I'm saying is, would you like to come visit me?_

_I would love to meet you._

_I really miss you both and I want to see you._

_It would be a great way of spending Ron's birthday._

_He would have liked us to be together and ... happy._

_I can understand if you are angry with me or would not want to come, but it would mean a lot to me if you did._

_I'm not ready yet to come back and it would truly be wonderful if you came here._

_Irrespective of your answer, I'm sending another note which has my address on it._

_If you can come, write_ _back and we can work out the details._

_I believe I have a lot of leave pending. We need to spend some time together._

_Awaiting your arrival._

_Love,_

_Hermione._

Ginny finished the letter and joined Harry in the stance that she had found him in.

Both of them didn't speak anything for a few moments.

Ginny broke the silence first. "She... She's ... Harry... She's called us. Says she wants to meet."

"I was there when you read the letter Gin." Harry said.

"Can you believe this?" Ginny breathed.

Harry was shaking his head, his eyes blinking furiously to keep away any evidence of emotion.

"We are going right?" She asked cautiously.

"I still can't believe it. Ginny, she's called us. Do you know what this means?" Harry asked.

"Of course I bloody know what this means Harry. It's the moment we were waiting for. She finally wants to meet us. She's ready Harry." Ginny exclaimed hysterically.

"I still can't believe it." Harry stated looking as dazed as ever.

"You better believe it soon, love." Ginny said, snapping out of it. "Because I refuse to let the international permits delay our trip. When should I tell her we will be coming?"

"Um. I think a day will be required for the permit and I want to go see your Healer before we take the trip. No way, don't even try to get out of it Gin, I need to make sure which is the best form of transport in your condition." Harry said in a no arguments tone before Ginny could even protest.

"Fine." She huffed. "I'm going to owl Healer Jenson for an appointment and you go get the permits. I think the day after tomorrow should be fine. We can be together on Ron's birthday that way too."

"Right. I'll see you soon love." Harry kissed his wife's forehead affectionately. "Do try to contain your excitement."

"I'm trying to get out the shock." Ginny replied honestly. "First she starts responding to letters and now this. I'm so relieved. I don't know what has changed in her life but it's such a welcome one and she deserves to be happy."

"She does. And she will be. We'll make sure of it." Harry said seriously and left.

Ginny re-read the letter again and couldn't resist doing a mini jig in her kitchen.

She clutched the letter to her chest and allowed a few tears of joy to run across her cheeks before she went to fetch some parchment and a quill to reply back.

**.**

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"Draco? Draco? Malfoy?" She used his last name when he refused to emerge from his room.

"Where is he when you need him?" She muttered under her breath.

She checked the kitchen first, because that was one of his favourite places. But it was spick and span as if he hadn't even been there today.

The living room had been empty and so was his room.

"Where could he have gone?" She mused. "We were supposed to meet in 30 minutes; I wonder why he's not here."

Still thinking about the currently incognito Draco, she mindlessly pushed open the bathroom door just like she had pushed the kitchen door and the bedroom door.

"What the... Blimey Hermione! What do you...? Oh heck... A little warning perhaps?" Draco's voice strained.

"Oh Draco ... My ... I'm so ... I was ... Kitchen... Right. I'll leave you .. I'm .. Just sorry." She babbled with her eyes lowered, her face red with all the pooled blood that had graced the dilated vessels under her skin.

She hastily slipped out of his room and used the front door to get out of his flat. She reached the door of her flat and remembered she didn't have her keys.

She had apparated into Draco's flat but now that she was positively flushed and flustered, she wondered whether she would be able to concentrate enough to apparate without splinching herself or reaching some other place.

Draco's surprised face kept coming in front of her eyes and the change in his expression from surprise to amusement when he had witnessed her discomfort was not lost on her.

"Oh God." She croaked as she slid her behind against her wooden door and sat down on the carpeted hallway to gather her wits.

"Any other person would be mortified if someone walked in on them in the bathroom and saw their butt." She thought. "But he's going to so enjoy teasing me about it."

She groaned again. She cursed herself for just opening the bathroom door without calling out.

But why she even felt the need to open his door was beyond her. It's obvious that 99 times out of 100 if a person is in the bathroom they would be in various levels of indecency.

That's why it's private for a reason. And she had gone and just barged in expecting to find him in there.

Oh he was. In there. Stepping out of the shower with his towel wiping his face which had been away from Hermione's view.

As soon as he heard the door open, instinctively he wrapped the towel in any way he could but not before his behind had left lasting impressions in her mind.

"Yes that's what he'll do. He'll tease you mercilessly and you will feel so embarrassed that you're going to hide or apologise for the rest of your life." She said to herself. "But he must be embarrassed too. After all it was his modesty at display, not mine."

"Hmm. I bet he's embarrassed. But he'll tease me to cover it up." She went on thinking. "If I pretend to be casual about it probably he'll leave it at that."

This logic seemed to calm her frayed nerves and she took deep breaths before she apparated back into her flat.

She made herself a cup of cardamom tea to clear the thoughts (and pictures) going through her head.

Damn!

Trying very hard to ignore the backside view of his very well sculpted torso (yeah, she hadn't noticed it closely until now) she poured her tea into her cup.

His back is even paler than his face. She thought.

"Ouch." She yelped as the hot tea burned her tongue. "That's what you get for thinking things you're not supposed to Hermione. You deserve it."

She scowled and wished that someone could just obliviate the memory from her head.

It was causing more problems than it should.

Maybe it would get better. Things like this happen don't they? She had seen plenty of naked men during her training. So it's not like it was the first time or anything.

That's Those men were her patients. He was her friend. And that really complicated things.

"Merlin!" She said. "I better get a grip before he comes."

As if on cue, he popped into her living room now dressed (fully, may I add) in jeans and a dark purple t-shirt, his hair slightly wet and shaken haphazardly.

He had probably not even run a comb through it and it looked so good already.

Criminal. It was criminal to have such sexy hair.

Sexy! ?

Hermione Granger ! You did not just call him sexy! She berated herself.

Oh who am I kidding? She sighed. He is sexy. Always has been.

"Hmmm. Hasn't anyone taught you to knock before entering Granger?" Draco said in an amused tone.

Hermione blushed again but she refused to fall prey to his tactic of embarrassing herself.

"Hasn't anyone taught you to lock your door while using the bathroom Malfoy?" She retorted back in a voice that sounded way bolder than she felt.

Draco assumed a surprised but yet amused and impressed look in his expression.

He had not expected Hermione to retaliate back.

Usually she was feisty in her arguments but things like these embarrassed her too much.

"Hmmm. Fair enough I suppose." He smirked. "But what was so bloody important that you had to come barging into the bathroom without stopping to knock?"

Hermione suddenly beamed. She had almost forgotten in all this her reason for being so excited.

"Oh Draco I just got Ginny's letter. She's losing it out there. She's practically packed and now they are waiting for their permit. They should be here by the day after tomorrow." Hermione gushed.

Draco smiled at her childlike excitement.

Yes. Hermione Granger was definitely back!

"That's great. For you I mean." He said. "I can't say I'll be glad to meet him."

Hermione scowled. "Draco ..." She warned.

"Yes yes I remember. I'll behave." He said before she could say anything.

"Good." She stated pompously.

"So" He said waggling his eyebrows maniacally. "Liked what you saw?"

Hermione flushed deeply and found herself at a loss of words again. And that in itself was a shocking thing for Hermione Granger.

"You ... I... "She flustered."Get out. Just get out."

He just laughed, satisfied by her reaction, he sprawled himself on the couch and helped himself to Hermione's tea while she stood there fuming at him.

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	29. Chapter 29

**CHAPTER 29.**

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Hermione was pacing.

And when she paced she really paced.  
>Tirelessly.<p>

"Oh stop it Granger." Draco said irritated. "You're wearing out the rug."

She shot him a dirty look but continued pacing, wringing her hands till her knuckles were white.

Draco rolled his eyes. She really needed to let go.

"Hermione. Relax. They aren't going to eat you up or hex you or permanently disfigure you or something. They're your friend's right?" Draco reasoned.

Hermione looked at him with eyes etched with worry and uncertainty. "I know they won't do any of the above. Honestly Draco, you think I'm worried Harry or Ginny will maim me?" She laughed humourlessly.

"I'm worried you're going to maim the floor." He muttered under his breath.

Hermione seemed to hear him and glared at him again. "This must be so amusing for you."

"Not really. It's rather tiring." Draco said as he shifted into a more comfortable position on her couch. "My eyes are following you and aching as a result."

"But Draco!" She wailed. "They'll be here soon and I don't even know what I'm going to say to them."

"Hermione it's been two days since you got their reply and you've been worrying ever since. Ginny seemed so excited. You have nothing to worry about." Draco reasoned with her.

"What if they hate me? Lash out at me? I mean, they have all reason to. I just don't know if I'll be able to take it." She said.

"Granger. Calm down. Nothing of that sort is going to happen. They've waited for this longer than you can imagine. They love you and although they don't condone you for your actions, they understand why you did it. So relax and just wait. Their portkey should deliver them here soon." Draco said.

Hermione nodded but still looked unconvinced.

"Why did you get them a portkey by the way?" Draco asked. "I thought they were applying for apparition."

"Yeah they did. They can apparate legally in Australia now. But for their arrival I arranged a portkey so I'd be aware of the time they would come. To you know, prepare myself." Hermione replied.

"Okay. And how's the prep coming along?" Draco asked cheekily.

Hermione scowled. "Very funny. You're no help. At least don't bother me more."

"Merlin Hermione. You worry too much. I'll have to say I told you so when the Potter's come and no harm will be done." Draco said exasperatedly.

"Fine. I'll try to relax. Maybe some tea will help." Hermione said.

Draco got up. "Okay I'll get some." He offered.

"No no. I think I'll make it. It'll give my hands something else to do." Hermione said.

"True." Draco mused. "So have you decided if you want me to be here or not?"

"When they arrive?" Hermione asked.

"Yes Hermione when they arrive." Draco said as if he was speaking to a child.

"I don't know." She said after adding some tea to the water. "I mean it would be nice to have some moral support but then again I don't know how happy Harry will be if he were to know that I met you before him."

"I don't think he'll care Granger." Draco said. "You give him way little credit than he deserves."

Despite herself Hermione found the corners of her mouth twitching into a smile.

"Did I just hear you back Harry Potter? Your arch enemy?" She teased him.

Draco scowled. "I'm not backing him. Just a guess. I mean we've all grown now. And matured. I'm just assuming he may have matured as well. We'll see if my assumptions are true or not."

Hermione scoffed. "Ha! You and mature? Please. Spare me." She said as she stirred the sugar into the cups and handed one to Draco.

"Hey! I am mature." Draco protested.

"Says the man who got sick after a dozen cotton candies. Really Draco, you must control yourself at these fairs." Hermione chided him.

"It's all fluffy and sweet." Draco pouted.

"And bad for your teeth." Hermione said matter of factly.

"Really Granger, teeth problems is the last thing I'd be worried about." He said. "Wizard remember?"

Hermione laughed. "Fine. You pseudo mature idiot."

They had their tea and chatted for a while. Draco was glad that he could distract her. She had been worrying herself sick ever since Ginny had written back.

"So I umm think that maybe just this once I should meet them alone." Hermione said softly.

Draco nodded slowly.

It was for the better.

He realised that she needed some time alone with them.

He was glad he had had his private moment when he met her. He would have hated it if there would have been someone else to witness the first meeting they had in over 3 years.

And she really needed to sort things out with them.

"Good. You know where I will be." Draco said kindly.

"I know. Thanks. I hope you're not feeling bad Draco." Hermione asked.

Draco laughed. "Bad? Are you joking? I'm so relieved. Just because I insinuated that Potter had matured doesn't mean I fancy being the audience to your reunion with him."

Hermione swatted his arm playfully and mock glared at him but his wide smile and laughing eyes made it impossible for her to hold her glare and she laughed with him.

"I can do this." She said resolutely. "I can can't I?" She asked Draco.

Draco got up and gently held her by the shoulder and kissed her forehead.

She leaned into his chest, her cheek pressed against his t-shirt.

"Hermione it will be all right. You're being too negative about this. You can be too harsh on yourself." Draco said.

"I'll deserve it. Whatever happens I'll deserve it." Hermione said.

"Sshh. Don't get ahead of yourself Granger. You might want me to come and rescue you from Potter mania." Draco laughed.

Hermione hit him again. "Don't make fun of my friends okay."

Draco made a face at her and she returned it.

"Fine. I'm leaving. I know when I'm not needed." Draco huffed.

"Yeah yeah go." Hermione kidded.

"When are they due?" Draco asked.

Hermione checked her watch. "Oh soon. I didn't realise the time passing so quickly. They should be here in a couple of minutes."

"Ok. I'll leave then. You come get me when you want to ok?" Draco said.

Hermione nodded and smiled at him, her eyes still guarded.

He smiled back reassuringly and popped out of her flat.

She stood there looking at the place he had been seconds ago. She sighed and worry lines re-appeared on her face.

She wasn't alone for long. Sure enough, a minute and a half later there was a wave of wind and she could see two people had arrived. Well, Ginny had managed to arrive gracefully but her husband had managed to get himself tangled in his own web of limbs.

Instinctively, Hermione laughed. Ginny turned towards the direction of the laughter and looking at Harry and Hermione she too started laughing.

Harry just looked sheepish and stood up rather promptly and brushed his behind, trying to regain some quick dignity.

"Portkey travel still doesn't agree with you I see." Hermione said in between chuckles.

Ginny and Harry politely laughed too but mainly they just looked at their friend who was laughing rather openly.

Her eyes shone with mirth and she seemed really happy to see them there.

Harry couldn't wait any more. He flung himself at his best female friend and hugged her like there was no tomorrow.

Hermione was startled by the sudden hug but she recovered fairly quickly and returned his hug with gusto.

Ginny had already started weeping by now at the sight of the reunion and Hermione and Harry also found their eyes moist.

"Hey I'm feeling all left out." Ginny said feebly.

Hermione let out a watery laugh and tried to extricate herself from Harry's grip so she could include Ginny in their group hug. But Harry refused to let go and all Hermione could do was to extend her arm to Ginny who took it and she expertly integrated her into their hug without breaking it.

They stood huddled for several seconds, sniffing occasionally. After a few minutes they separated and all 3 of them looked at each other and laughed.

"Hermione" Harry croaked his voice raw with emotion.

"Harry I ..." Hermione started.

"I thought I'd never see you again." Harry said with pain evident in his voice.

"Harry I'm so..." Hermione tried saying.

"I always knew I'd be seeing you again Hermione. No way could you stay away from us for so long. We are just that awesome." Ginny said pompously.

Hermione laughed.

"I'm just glad Ginny was right." Harry said finally.

"I'm sorry Harry. Ginny I'm sorry too. I've been so selfish. You lost a brother too. Harry I never realised that I took away the remainder of our trio... I was so thoughtless... Please forgive me? I can't tell you how much it means to me that you both are here to see me." Hermione said.

"Ssshh. Hermione." Ginny hugged her. "We weren't exactly happy by what you did but we are your friends. We understood why you did what you did even though we don't agree. But if it's helped you heal, there's nothing we have against you."

Hermione had tears in her eyes again.

"I've missed you Mione." Harry said softly as he pressed a brotherly kiss on the top of her head. "I've really missed you. I don't care about anything. I'm just glad you're ready to have us back in your life."

"My life? Merlin! I can't thank you enough for taking me back! I was worried senseless." Hermione admitted.

"We would never leave you Hermione. We've waited for every letter to have words instead of silence and when we finally did, it was intoxicating." Ginny said. "It's like our life is complete now."

And so just like the old days they sat and caught up with everything each other had missed.

"Oh dear! Look at the time! You must be famished! How rude of me, I've not even offered you anything since you came." Hermione fussed.

"Typical. You haven't changed Mione." Harry said lovingly.

Hermione fake scowled at him and brought out some pumpkin juice, coffee and sandwiches.

She put a semi ready chicken in the oven and set a timer.

"Dinner should be ready in 20. Meanwhile we can munch on these sandwiches." Hermione said.

"Sure Hermione. Ginny!" Harry exclaimed, slapping his wife's hand away from the pot of coffee. "No coffee for you."

She pouted at her over observant husband and opted for the juice instead.

Hermione laughed. "A little coffee once in a while won't hurt her Harry."

"Yeah but you know her, she can get carried away. I'd rather she not have it at all." Harry said.

"Hello! I'm right here. I think I can control my coffee intake on my own thank you very much." Ginny said indignantly.

"Yes she can Harry. How dare you control her? Pregnant women have cravings too you know?" Hermione egged him.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Oh I'm aware of the cravings all right! Who has mashed potatoes with sweet mango pickle?" He gagged.

Ginny looked sheepish and Hermione laughed again.

Except for their slightly emotional reunion, things with her pals were like it had always been. Easy and comfortable.

And at home.

She felt at home and peaceful after a long time.

Although Ron was missing and his absence really made itself obvious many times, it didn't completely engulf her with hopelessness as it once had.

Maybe that's why they say having people who love you to cope is the best way to heal.

She realised that she had been late in getting in touch with her friends and family, but better late than never right?

Inspite of her scepticism, she was glad that she had allowed Draco to force her to take this decision.

She knew that alone she would have never been able to heal and cope so well, she really owed him her sanity.

The oven chimed and Hermione got their dinner out and she quickly plated up and the new trio continued to share stories until after dessert.

Ginny yawned though she tried hard to conceal it.

Harry laughed and kissed his wife. "You're tired love. We should go to bed. After all we have all week with Hermione."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah Gin. I'll show you to your room. You should get proper sleep! We can catch up more tomorrow."

Hermione showed harry and Ginny the guest room which she and Draco had redecorated in a mix of muggle and magical way.

Damn Draco Malfoy! He always got his way! But she was glad she had listened to him.

"Good night Mione." Harry hugged her, pouring more emotion in it than any words could convey at that moment.

"Good night Harry, Ginny." She said as she smiled and exited their room. "Rest well. I have a fun day planned tomorrow."

Ginny's sleepy eyes lit up momentarily with excitement and Harry and Hermione laughed as she mumbled a sleepy goodnight.

Shutting the guest room door behind her, Hermione sighed.

She was tired but elated. Her first meeting with her best friends had gone better than she had expected.

Harry had waved off any apologies on her part and with him standing so happy and content she lost all her feelings of guilt and relished the moment of just being with her friends again.

"I guess it went well then?" A voice said from the living room.

Hermione jumped at the voice but steadied herself as she saw the familiar smirk and mop of silky pale blond hair sprawled on her couch comfortably.

"Draco!" She admonished. "Why are you here? I thought I was supposed to fetch you."

"Well you didn't. Clearly. So I thought of coming by and checking up on you." He smirked again.

"We just got talking and time flew. They barely let me apologize for anything. It was just like the old times. But you, mister! What if they had seen you ? I still have to explain about you to them!" She chided him.

He scowled. "Just because you have your new friends you've forgotten me."

Hermione chuckled. "They are my old friends Draco. If memory serves right you became my friend much after them."

"Whatever." Draco grumbled.

Hermione laughed again and hugged him, ruffling the top of his criminally manageable hair. "You know I could never forget you. I was just saying good night to them and was coming over."

"If you insist." Draco pouted more.

"Please Draco. Stop behaving like you're 7 or something. Spoilt brat!" She mumbled under her laughter.

"Hey!" He defended himself. "I'm just making sure that I still have you on my side when Potter wants to duel me tomorrow."

"Oh shut up. Harry will want to do no such thing. You said so yourself that he's matured." Hermione countered as she snuggled into Draco on the couch.  
>"Hmmm. Perhaps." Draco mused.<p>

"Have you eaten?" Hermione asked, yawning and trying to cover her mouth.

"Yeah. I figured you wouldn't be free for dinner." He grinned.

"Sorry Draco, it's just today I promise. Tomorrow I'll tell them." Hermione mumbled sleepily.

"Of course Hermione. Don't worry. I have your back." He said as she put her head on his shoulder and fell asleep.

Draco smiled as he accioed the shawl from her room so that he could cover her with it. She looked tired. Mindless worrying could do that to you.

He didn't think she would be waking up anytime soon so he made himself comfortable against the soft backrest of the sofa and fell asleep himself dreaming about bushy brown hair scented with mint and thyme shampoo.

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That was an awfully long dream about mint and thyme smelling bushy brown hair. Nothing was too vivid about it but it was there. Just there in the background.

And then he sneezed.

And woke up to a mass of bushy brown hair in his face, detrimental to air intake.

He separated the hair from his airways and squinted. The sunlight seemed to be streaming in through her sheer peach drapes and it cast a soothing early morning glow to her living room.

Draco could make out the tiny dust particles that were all moving about haphazardly along the beam of light.

He looked down to see Hermione almost sprawled against him. He smiled. So that was the bushiness he was enveloped in.

He needed her to do something about her hair! He could have died of asphyxiation!

He looked at his watch! 7Am. Wow! He couldn't believe that he managed to get 6 good hours of sleep in sitting position on the couch.

But then again with Hermione by his side he probably would have slept like a baby even in the midst of a whirlpool.

Gently laying Hermione away from him, he stretched and yawned. Good thing he woke up before any of the Potters did.

Harry and Ginny may be aware of Hermione's friendship with Draco but seeing him here snuggling with her in the middle of the night under one thin shawl was not something Draco thought that Harry would find amusing.

He levitated the sleeping Hermione into her room and placed a blanket over her. He kissed her gently on the cheek and apparated out of her flat.

He would catch up on the remainder of his sleep in the safety of his house, away from Potter.

Dealing with them was Hermione's chore. Not that he was afraid of Harry, but Hermione really cared about him and she really cared for Draco as well. She had lost enough in life and he sure as hell did not want her to be choosing between her friends as well.

He dozed off hoping that Harry would be fine with him. He knew that Ginny was sensible and once you got past her impulsive and explosive excited nature, she could be a fair person.

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Hermione woke to the sound of pots and pans clinking in her kitchen.

Stretching her arms and neck, she yawned and surveyed her surroundings.

She didn't remember falling asleep in her room last night. Panicking, she looked around almost preparing to find Draco somewhere around.

Slowly she released her breath. No Draco. He probably brought her in here when she must have fallen asleep. Smiling at his thoughtfulness she got up and brushed her teeth and freshened up before going out.

Sure enough, she found a very awake and lively Ginny going through her cabinets. Waffles were already on the table and she was currently preparing eggs.

"Good morning Hermione! Where is your salt?" She chirped.

Hermione nodded and allowed herself a small smile as she reached up to a cabinet and passed her the salt and pepper.

"Good morning! Someone's up and about!" Hermione exclaimed as she helped herself to a mug of coffee. "Did you have coffee too?" She asked critically.

Ginny winced. "Just a little Hermione. With milk that too. It was very mild I swear."

Hermione laughed. "Gin, it's okay. Just please lay off the alcohol at least okay?"

Ginny scowled. "Obviously Hermione. I'm pregnant. How can I even consider alcohol? I know coffee's not dangerous."

"Yeah but I know very well how fond you are of your occasional firewhiskey and weekly martini." Hermione said.

Ginny laughed. "Well yeah, but none of that at least for a long time. We were trying for so long Mione! And finally it's happened. I'm not going to endanger my child over something stupid."

"I know Gin! And I'm very happy for you and Harry." Hermione said softly."So Harry's sleeping in?"

"Oh yeah! I don't think he's still quite used to portkey travel." Ginny said. "He said something like jet lag but you know Harry, keeps saying senseless things. What in the world would jet lag even mean?" Ginny laughed.

Hermione laughed heartily at her friend's naivety about muggle terms. "Ginny, it's a muggle term. Although it's not valid in your case but I understand why he said it."

"Oh." Ginny scrunched up her face as she poured sweetened strawberry coulis over the waffles and handed one to Hermione. "Thank Merlin! I thought he was losing his mind."

"Who's losing their mind?" Harry's sleepy voice came from the opposite direction.

"Oh nothing darling. Good morning. Did you sleep well?" Ginny covered up quickly, planting a long kiss on her husband's lips as Hermione tried to swallow her bite of waffles in midst of her laughter.

"Splendid." Replied Harry. "Breakfast looks wonderful sweetheart."

"Yeah. She was all done by the time I came out. I'm being such a rubbish host." Hermione whined. "It should have been me preparing breakfast for you. Not the other way round."

"Oh sshh Mione. We all know you can't cook to save a life. So let's leave the cooking to me and the sightseeing and fun day planning to you. I bet you've an entire week's itinerary prepared." Ginny said with a teasing glint in her eyes.

Hermione blushed. Well she did have it all prepared and Draco had helped too. But it was about time she told them about Draco. She really didn't want to hide him and frankly there was no need to. They were all adults and capable of mutual understanding. Or at least she hoped.

Hermione gulped. Well, after breakfast. She promised herself. A well fed Harry was a happy Harry. Chances of him being unreasonable were less then.

"So Harry, tea, coffee or juice?" She asked brightly.

"Hmmm. Coffee would be nice." He replied.

Hermione poured him a mug and Ginny plated up his waffles and put it in front of him.

They enjoyed a hearty breakfast and caught up on the events that Hermione had missed over the past months.

"Really?" Hermione asked as she wiped her mouth with her napkin. "I can't believe McGonagall offered Neville a job as professor of Herbology. Not that I'm surprised. He was always very talented at it."

Ginny nodded. "Yeah. We were surprised too. I mean I didn't think he would be offered the job so soon. But well, professor sprout decided to open her own greenhouse in Hogsmeade so she retired. And Neville agreed."

"That's great." Hermione said. "And what about Hannah? What is she doing? Is she still running the Three broomsticks?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Hannah and Neville will live at the Hogsmeade quarters for Hogwarts professors all year round."

"That's nice." Hermione said.

She was wondering how to open up Draco's topic. But so far she hadn't found any opening. Maybe she should just jump into it, she thought.

"Oohh I bet you don't know what Oliver wood is up to Hermione!" Ginny said excitedly.

Harry groaned. This was Ginny's gossip tone and he very well knew that the two women would get into discussions of inane gossip that Harry cared very little about. Although Hermione was averse to gossip herself, but with Ginny's penchant for gossip and storytelling abilities, she too would invariably get sucked into it and her curiosity would always get better of her.

Hermione chanced a sceptical look at Harry. She was very aware of Ginny's tone herself and she found herself sharing a secret look with Harry pleading him to distract her from Ginny's gossip.

Harry just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.

"Wuss." She mouthed at him angrily.

"He's been made captain of the puddlemere united team." Ginny gushed. "And he got married last month. You will NOT believe who he got married to."

All Hermione heard was puddlemere united. Quidditch team. Yes! This was the perfect opening she could have ever had. She could almost kiss Ginny right now. She thanked her stars that she had allowed Ginny to ramble because now she could venture into Quidditch topic and thereby talk about Draco!

"What? Wow! That's great! He always was too obsessed about Quidditch." Hermione said with fake enthusiasm. "So who else is playing professional Quidditch then? Anyone we know?" She asked not very subtly.

Hermione Granger was talented at many things. But subtlety was definitely not one of those things.

"What? Hermione! Don't you even want to guess who Wood married? I bet you wouldn't see that coming in a 100 years." Ginny said.

Harry rolled his eyes. "You better start guessing Hermione. I can guarantee that you won't be able to answer that."

"Oh." Hermione replied, somewhat miffed that she had to play 20 questions about Oliver bleeding Wood's wife's name when she was scared shit about bringing out Draco's topic.

Well, may as well get it over with. She thought.

"Umm I don't know, maybe umm Katie Bell? She seemed interested in Quidditch too and I think she was in puddlemere united." Hermione guessed.

"Oh yeah she was. But she's married too Lee Jordan." Ginny said. "Think closer Hermione. I bet you can't."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well Ginny since you're so sure I'll never guess it, why don't you just tell me?"

"Oh but there's no fun in that is there?" Ginny countered. "I'll give you a hint."

"Ginny, any hint you'll give her be a dead giveaway. I suggest you just tell her. The shock factor will be more effective that way." Harry suggested.

Now Hermione was curious. Who had Oliver Wood married that had gotten Ginny so charged up? Even Harry agreed that it was a shocking pair.

She would get back to Draco's topic as soon as she had discovered the piece of gossip.

"Okay now I'm curious. Out with it Ginny." Hermione ordered.

Ginny laughed. "Okay. This is crazy. I bet you're not going to believe me. I myself had a hard time believing the news. It was all over the Prophet and if I'd have not seen their photographs with my own eyes, I would have thought they were rumours."

"Ginny ..." Hermione said impatiently.

"Okay okay!" Ginny said. "Oliver Wood went and married... LAVENDER BROWN!" She said dramatically.

Hermione almost choked on her coffee. Mistake. She shouldn't have had a sip when Ginny was gossiping. Especially when she had been warned that it was unbelievable news.

She coughed and spluttered and Harry thumped her back and Ginny was laughing.

"What? What? Oliver and Brown? You've got to be pulling my wand. There must be some mistake! She doesn't even know if Quidditch starts with a 'Q' or a 'K'! How the hell did Oliver marry her?" Hermione asked.

"Your guess is as good as ours Mione. We were equally shocked." Harry said.

"That's crazy!" Hermione said. "He's like 5 or 6 years older than her. What could they possibly have in common?"  
>"Well," Ginny began.<p>

"Ginny" Harry warned. "What have I told you about making assumptions when you have no basis?"

Ginny pouted. "But Harry it's the only logical assumption. Besides, it's Hermione. I can share my theories with her without being judged."

Hermione and Harry both laughed.

Trust Ginny to come up with a completely scandalous assumption. The more dramatic her guesses the more she believed in them. Logical was the last thing one could expect her theories to be.

"Okay Gin. Bring it on." Hermione chuckled. This was something she really wanted to hear.

"Okay." Ginny said coming closer and sounding all serious as if she was going to divulge some top secret or something. "I think it's a celebrity marriage of convenience." She said proudly.

"What?" Hermione asked. "Lavender is no celebrity."

"Oh no. Not a celebrity per se. But she's a stylist to many celebrities. And Oliver is a celebrity. And Lavender moves in all the top circles. She's always all dolled up and attending all charity events and ministry functions. I think she married him for his status and he married her just so he could have an arm candy wife who wouldn't bother him and leave him alone. So both of them gain something."

Hermione looked at Ginny and Harry incredulously.

"Lavender I understand but why would Oliver want to marry someone out of convenience? He could get anyone he wanted or loved rather." Hermione asked.

"Hermione, the only thing Oliver loves is Quidditch. He's married to it. He has no time for social obligations and love. I bet he married Lavender to just uphold a social status and he would need someone who wouldn't interfere with his career. And she doesn't seem like the type to care. Her status would surely be upgraded." Ginny explained.

"Wow. When you say it that way..." Hermione whistled.

"Or he's gay and he's just covering up by marrying her." Ginny said.

Hermione choked again.

"Ginny!" She exclaimed.

"Just telling you all the possible scenarios." Ginny stated nonchalantly.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Have you considered the logical explanation of love? They probably met somewhere and fell in love! Normal people marry out of love, you know?"

Now Ginny rolled her eyes. "Oh Harry. Don't be naïve." She scoffed.

Hermione laughed. "Wow. That was quite a serving of gossip for breakfast I must say though."

"What can I say? I live to entertain." Ginny said.

"So who else plays professional Quidditch? Besides Wood and Katie bell I mean? You should know Gin; you're quite the marketing manager for Falmouth Falcons." Hermione said, trying to ease into Draco's topic.

"Oh yeah. No one from our year though. Although Victor Krum had been offered an outrageous amount of money to join Puddlemere. He declined of course. He's way too loyal to his home team." Ginny said.

"Hmm. That reminds me I met Draco Malfoy's team here a month ago. His sponsor is Japanese. So I doubt you'll know much about him." Hermione said casually although her breath was caught in her throat.

"Yeah. I've heard of them. They've only ever played once in England against the Holyhead Harpies. I don't know much about them." Ginny said.

Harry was quietly listening to the exchange. He didn't seem guarded that she had mentioned Draco's name.

Well, here goes!

"Yeah. So I accidentally came across Draco. He... He kind of was my patient." Hermione said.

She braced herself for the onslaught of questions but surprisingly none came.

Harry and Ginny both looked quite peaceful.

So she carried on. "Yeah. So at first he was unconscious. So he didn't know I was his Healer. But then he gained consciousness and he's umm... Ever since then, he's sort of been here."

Ginny nodded. Harry remained the same. Not saying anything but still attentive.

"He's umm actually living here. Says he wanted to spend his vacation here. And that he finally found me so he was going to spend some time with me." Hermione said in a single breath.

There! Most of it done!

"Oh so where does he live?" Ginny asked.

"Next door." Hermione said.

There was a flicker of surprise in Harry's eyes but besides that he didn't volunteer any words.

"Oh. Okay. So is he still here?" Ginny asked.

Hermione nodded.

"Look I know you're upset Harry but please don't take it the wrong way. I didn't mean to meet him. It just happened. He was all injured and all and I couldn't just leave him and then when he came to know I was here he refused to leave. I didn't even know when he leased out the flat next door. He just..." Hermione ranted.

"Hermione! Hermione! Stop!" Harry said. "I'm not upset or anything. Why would I be?"

"Well for starters you're not saying anything. And I met Draco before I met you as in I interacted with him and allowed him to practically drive me crazy and dictate my life whilst you and Ginny didn't even know where I was." Hermione said sadly.

Ginny smiled and took Hermione's hand. Harry came over and hugged her.

"Hermione I don't care who the bloody hell you meet. As long as you got in touch with us and were ready to meet us I wouldn't bother." Harry said.

"Yes Mione. The important thing is you were ready to see us. That matters more that who got to meet you first. It's not a race." Ginny said.

Hermione smiled. She was relieved. Draco was right. Harry had matured.

"So you really are okay? That he's been here for a month?" Hermione asked carefully.

Harry nodded.

"Hermione. We knew." Ginny said softly. "Your parents told us everything."

Hermione's jaw dropped. "You .. You knew all along?"

Harry nodded.

"When you wrote us, we flooed your parents to tell them that we had heard from you. We had promised to keep them posted. That's when they told us about your visit. They said that they figured you would contact us yourself soon since you contacted them so they didn't tell us." Ginny said.

"They told us everything about Malfoy." Harry explained. "How he bothered you every day and forced you to re-establish contact with your parents."

"They seem to have lessened their animosity towards him." Ginny stated.

Hermione nodded still shocked that they knew about Draco.

"You didn't tell me. All this while I've been wondering how to tell you both about him and you've kept it quiet!" Hermione said.

"We knew you would tell us eventually. We didn't want to shock you." Ginny said.

"As opposed to what?" Hermione asked. "I'm still shocked."

Harry laughed. "Relax Mione. It's not like we are pals with Malfoy or anything but you are. And that is enough for us. In fact we are thankful he came across you and pulled you out from what you've been going through."

"Was it Malfoy's idea to call us here too?" Ginny asked softly.

"Partly yeah. I'd been thinking about you both a lot. I kept re-reading your letters and I was missing you so much. I was scared to call you but he practically forced me into it." Hermione laughed.

"Well then whatever may be the past with him, he got you back and here we are today sitting in your living room having breakfast with you and it's all thanks to him. I think it's safe to say we can go beyond being just civil. We owe him big-time." Harry said.

Hermione was shocked for the third time since morning. She found herself tearing up at Harry's little speech.

"Harry..." She said. "I don't know what to say. Thank you. It.. It means a lot to me."

"If you trust him Hermione, we trust him. Besides, we've met him a few times since you left and he was genuinely upset and worried. He kept in touch with Harry all on his own accord only for you." Ginny said.

"He .. He spoke with you about me? More than once?" Hermione asked surprised.

Harry nodded. "Every month."

"Wow. He said he had spoken to you but I never knew he kept tabs so often." Hermione said, still shocked.

"We're just glad you had someone with you." Ginny said.

"Thank you. For understanding. This ... I... Wow. I can't tell you how relieved I am." Hermione said.

"I can't believe you were so stressed about this." Harry said. "What is the worst we could have said or done?"

"Don't you remember the first time I'd told you about him?" Hermione asked. "You blew up almost. Thankfully Ginny controlled you."

Harry looked at Hermione sheepishly. "Well, you can't blame me. We've been at loggerheads with him for years and suddenly you come and tell us that you're best friends with him since the end of third year and that he's helped us in the war and all. It was so unbelievable. Besides, we've all grown up now. We're more mature. Things change Mione."

Hermione laughed. "That is exactly what Draco said."

"Draco is it?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Harry..." Ginny warned.

"Just joking Gin." Harry laughed.

"So. So you won't mind if Draco hangs out with us? I've tried massively to get him to go back but he won't budge from here." Hermione sighed

"Like you really want him to leave Hermione." Ginny teased.

Hermione flushed under her friends teasing gaze and gave her a warning look.

"He's helped me through a lot. Most times I've wanted to wring his neck but you know how stubborn he can get." Hermione said.

"Well it's a good thing he's as stubborn as you. Lord knows when we would have gotten the chance to meet you otherwise." Harry stated.

"Okay. So this is all sorted! Now I think we should all get dressed and let Hermione go according to her meticulous planning of sightseeing for us." Ginny declared.

Hermione looked at the clock. "Oh we need to hurry. We're behind schedule anyway. You go ahead and get changed, I'll tell Draco he can join us too and then we'll leave in an hour."

"Okay." Ginny said.

Hermione popped out of her flat and that left Harry and Ginny alone.

"I'm proud of you Harry." Ginny kissed her husband. "You handled the Draco bit well. She needs us to be supportive. We can't push her away from us again."

Harry sighed. "As much as I disliked the bloke years ago, Hermione seems to really get him and for some reason he really gets her too. It's not my place to judge her friends."

Ginny nodded. "Damn right. And Malfoy's not so bad. He may be a pompous git at times but he really cares about Hermione. He's managed what we couldn't. And that really says something."

"I guess. I'll tolerate him for Hermione." Harry said dramatically.

Ginny laughed and lightly swatted his arm. "Who knows? You might even grow to like the man."

Harry looked aghast that she could even consider such blasphemy.

"Oh don't go all theatrical on me Harry Potter. You promised you would try genuinely. There's no backing out now." Ginny scolded him.

"Fine." He grumbled. "But if he puts one toe out of line..."

"Yes yes. We know. Go get dressed now. I really want to try Australian ice cream. Hurry now." Ginny urged.

Harry shook his head disdainfully and made his way to the bathroom.

"So Draco Malfoy. I'll be watching you too." Ginny said with a knowing mischievous glint in her eye.

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**Phew!**

**Longest chapter!**

**God knows I've taken an age to dish out this chapter!**

**I kept writing it whenever I had a breather!**

**I hope the long chapter sort of makes up for the delay in updating!**

**I thought of splitting the chapter but it was this long scene with the arrival of Harry and Ginny and I didn't want to break the dynamics. So it's all here in one!**

**Besides I'm not sure when I'll be updating next so I thought a long chapter was required!**

**Hope you enjoyed! I apologise again for the delay!**

**If there's anything you would like me to incorporate in the story please do tell! If it fits I would be willing to take ideas!**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	30. Chapter 30

**Thanks to;**

**MaronTodai,** **Audraell,****echizenochi,**  
><strong>bushyhaired-american-nerd,<strong>  
><strong>Melly2014,<strong> **cutiepiehp**  
><strong>SaruDM, Daisy Seary and<strong>

**My Bad Addiction** -**who has read all 29 chapters in a single go and commented on more than half! Thank you sooo much!**

**For all you Draco Malfoy lovers out there reading this fic, I'd like to say that my friend,****'My Bad Addiction****' is a fantastic writer and she's written a great Draco/Ginny called****'Working for the dragon'****which is still in progress along with her other Drinny story '****Under the Mistletoe****'.**

**Both are great stories and you should really check them out if you haven't read them already!**

**If I ever write a Draco/Ginny, it'll be because her story inspired me too! :)**

**I hope all of you had a Merry Christmas!**

**And wishing you all a very Happy New Year!**

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><strong>CHAPTER 30.<strong>

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"So will you be all right? I think it's all good. They were okay with me and they sure seemed okay with the idea of you being here. I mean even Harry was fine and Ginny, well you know Ginny. She doesn't really care about norms as long as..."

Draco was in his kitchen fixing himself a cup of tea. He tuned out as Hermione started rambling. She had entered only two minutes ago and her news was that the Weaslette and Potter knew about him and they wanted to meet him.

Well, he wasn't surprised really. He had kept in touch with Potter over the last year. What was surprising though was that Draco was getting tolerant of him. He no longer thought him to be annoying and nauseatingly self righteous.

In fact once Potter had even met him once instead of just floo calling or owling as they usually did.

So he wasn't surprised that Potter didn't mind meeting him. But he wanted Hermione to have a good time with her friends. His presence would probably only make it more awkward and everyone would be guarded and cautious. Surely this wasn't the type of week Hermione needed.

"Draco! Come on! Are you listening to me?" Hermione asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah what?" Draco asked sheepishly.

"What? What? I've been talking away for minutes and you're not even paying attention!" She said indignantly.

"To be fair Hermione, you just stopped making sense when you started speaking so fast that my mortal ear couldn't follow you." Draco joked.

"Don't be silly Draco. You know I'm tensed as it is. And Godric knows I don't need it. This is supposed to be a fun reunion! I don't want to tiptoe around my friends." Hermione said ruefully.

Draco looked at her guiltily. He walked up to her and hugged her. "Fine. No stress. It will go as planned. I promise I will try my best to be gracious. After all, I'm practically the host."

"Yeah right." Hermione scoffed. "I've lived here for a year and a half and you're the host?"

"Well, who planned what places they could visit and the restaurants they could eat at?" Draco asked.

"Wellllll, I planned the hospital tour and the library and the museum..."Hermione said.

"Hmmm. Yeah." Draco mused. "That's a great plan. Because England so does not have a hospital or a library or a museum."

Hermione slapped him with a magazine. "Don't be a wise-ass. I was trying to add some culture."

"Admit it. My agenda is way better than yours." Draco stated.

"So not true." Hermione said.

"Fine." Draco said. "We'll just ask the Potter's them. And no revealing who suggested what, okay?"

"Hmmm. Okay." Hermione said, wincing as she remembered that Harry and Ginny both were never keen on cultural history and museums. Well anyway, they would rather listen to her than Draco. Right?

"Good. Let's go then." Draco said.

"Sounds good." Hermione said. "Meet me in 30 minutes in my living room." And she disapparated without waiting for Draco's reply.

"And goodbye to you to." Draco said to himself loudly.

He finished his tea and apparated to the Opera House where he purchased tickets for all of them. That was what Ginny had researched on and gone on and on about it. She would be rather thrilled about it.

He shook his head. He couldn't believe he was manually planning the Potter's holiday and purchasing tickets for them too.

Well, he had done that for Hermione last month but this was different. In a way, this was for Hermione as well. He had promised he would behave and try his best so this was his offer for a truce.

Hopefully, Potter would accept and the week would not be as awkward as he had envisaged it to be.

He checked his watch. It was almost time to meet at Hermione's flat. He walked quickly into a side alley and looking around to check for muggles, he apparated directly into Hermione's flat.

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Draco's arrival was signalled by a loud pop and at the same time a startled Harry jumped and a brown object flew from his hand. In slow motion and time freezing fashion, Draco and Harry's eyes followed the objects path. Its ascent was short-lived and soon gravity overtook and it began its downward journey towards Hermione's tiled kitchen floor.

Draco managed to catch the morose look on Harry's face as he saw his seemingly beloved object plummet to death. Reflexively he sought out his wand and arrested its fall just inches before it could collide with the tiles and crumble to death.

As the object lay suspended and very much intact, Draco got a chance to actually see what it was but not before he saw the look of supreme relief on Harry's face.

He had just successfully saved...  
>A BROWNIE !<p>

A brownie? A chocolate brownie.

This was unbelievable. All this for a blasted brownie! The look on Potter's face when he saw his precious brownie fall seemed like he was losing the philosopher's stone or something.

Harry bent down and retrieved his brownie with a look of pride on his face.

He then saw Draco.

"Umm. Thanks for saving this Malfoy." Harry said.

Draco was still speechless. He just waved his hand and pulled a chair to sit on.

Harry then put his brownie in a plate and opened the microwave door to place it in.

He shut the door and looked at all the buttons. He looked confused.

Draco was still looking at him. He couldn't help asking, "Why don't you just warm it using your wand Potter?"  
>Harry turned his eyes away from all the knobs and buttons. "I tried. But it's not as gooey and melty as it was when Hermione used this machine yesterday. The Dursleys never had a microwave so I don't know how to operate one." He added sheepishly.<p>

Draco raised his eyebrows comically and sneered. "You're basically telling me that the saviour of the wizarding world and the boy who lived twice cannot operate a microwave?"

Harry reddened slightly. "Well, it's confusing. All these buttons! Hermione just pressed a series of them so speedily yesterday. Besides, the kitchen is Ginny's department." He defended himself.

Draco actually found himself laughing. He got up and went to the microwave. "So you like it all gooey and melted eh Potter?"

"Well yeah. That's the best way to have it I reckon." Harry replied cautiously, somewhat aware now that this was Draco Malfoy, his childhood nemesis he was talking to.

And this wasn't one of his finest moments. If he was anything like the old Malfoy, he could use Harry's recent idiocy as ammunition against him.

"Damn right." Draco said as he punched in some buttons and the light inside went on and the brownie started rotating. "Gooey and melted is the only right way to have a brownie."

"Tell me about it." Harry conceded nodding his head. "Wait... Malfoy? You know how to work a microwave?"

"That was a brilliant deduction you made. What gave it away? This hot and gooey brownie here in front of you?" Draco said sarcastically.

Harry shook his head. Man! Maybe he was dreaming and in some alternate universe.

He had a bite of some brownie goodness. Damn. Hope it's not a dream, Harry thought. This brownie seems real.

"It's a muggle contraption!" Harry said still stunned.

"Look Potter. I think this is a good opportunity as any to let you know that I'm not the same Malfoy you knew me as. It's been a long time and frankly Hermione can get pushy. So I'm as muggle an actual muggle could be. Sometimes I even forget my wand." Draco said casually.

Harry gaped at him! "Merlin! Now I've seen everything!"

"Look, I know us being around each other can get awkward but Hermione really wants this to work. Heck, she needs this to work. And I don't care if I have to suck it up all week, I'll do it if it makes her happy." Draco stated.

It was a good thing that Harry had some brownie in his mouth. That was probably the only thing that prevented his jaw from sweeping the floor.

Harry knew Draco cared deeply for Hermione. But now he was certain. And like Draco, he too was ready to give Hermione's faith a chance. She deserved it and he would do anything for her. Even if it meant trying to befriend a Malfoy for a week.

He smiled and offered Draco his hand. "Hi. I'm Harry Potter."

Draco just rolled his eyes but claimed Harry's handshake nonetheless. "You are such a dork Potter." He said. "I'm Draco Malfoy. Umm nice to meet you?"

Harry laughed.

"Good Godric Malfoy! Hermione didn't tell me that the bludger altered you're memory. I'm Ginny Potter. Known to you by the name Weaslette. Rings a bell?" She asked cheekily.

Draco had to fight his laughter as he shook hands with Ginny. "Does your husband always behave this way in the presence of sugar? I just witnessed a rather disturbing show of love between a man and his dessert and let me tell you, it was unnatural."

Ginny's lips twitched. "What can I say? At home I monitor his intake." She said. She looked at Harry who was gobbling up the remains of his brownie speedily before his wife could vanish it. "Harry!" She exclaimed exasperatedly. "I leave you alone for 15 minutes and you can't control your sweet tooth?"

Harry shrugged unapologetically. "I told you not to leave me."

"I was showering!" Ginny said indignantly.

"I offered to shower with you!" Harry yelled back.

"Harry!" Ginny yelled, her neck reddening.

Harry turned to look at Draco who was trying very hard now not to burst out laughing. Who knew? Maybe the week wouldn't seem so long now.

"Don't come crying to me when you're a diabetic then." Ginny said trying to deflect attention from any shower related topics.

"Oh come on Ginny!" Harry insisted. "It was just one brownie!"

"You know what Harry Potter? I am not having this conversation with you now. We'll talk when we get back home." Ginny said crossing her arms across her chest.

"Umm not any of my business here, but are you two always like this?" Draco asked gratingly. "Because 7 days can get really long."

Hermione chose the same moment to enter, wiping her curls with a towel.

"What?" She said whining. "You all have just met and you're fighting already?"

Draco rolled his eyes and turned to face her. He stopped mid roll (something he'd never done before ever). She was wearing a dress.

A dress.

A deep blue cocktail dress. Nothing too revealing or fancy but Hermione wore dresses only when she felt really happy.

It made her feel beautiful she had told him once.

Not that she needed to feel beautiful. She was beautiful. But telling that to her would only entail a game of denial from her end.

So he just settled at ogling at her.

Discreetly.

Or so he thought.

Because Hermione was still upset over her friends not getting along, she missed the raised eyebrows and widening eyes and dilated pupils and the silence.

Even Harry who was usually oblivious to most things didn't fail to notice Draco's line of vision. He wasn't really surprised but actually seeing it live was something else.

Ginny obviously was observing all this with her usual keen eye and a smirk.

For someone who was the smartest witch of her age it was difficult to believe how oblivious Hermione was at that moment.

"We're not fighting." Ginny said trying to fill up the silence.

"Yeah." Harry said trying to calm Hermione down. "He even helped me heat my brownie."

"What?" Hermione asked confused.

"Relax Hermione." Ginny laughed. "We were just joking."

Now Hermione looked gobsmacked. "Joking? Three of you?" She asked disbelievingly. "And what brownie?"

"Well aren't we getting late? Come along now. I'll tell you on the way." Ginny urged.

"Fine." Hermione huffed. "But if they don't get along I'm going to kick some ass."

"WOW" Draco said finally.

"Damn right wow." Hermione said. "Don't think this is an empty threat." She said and disapparated with Ginny.

"Unbelievable." Draco whispered shaking his head.

"Phew." Harry said. "I know! She's never used ass kicking terms ever. And Hermione has gotten all red and angry plenty!"

"So damn hot." Draco said to himself wondering how did a mad and angry Hermione end up looking so hot.

Oh who was he kidding? He thought she always looked hot. Today was just super hot.

"Come along now Potter." Draco said. "You'll have to side along with me. I'm only hoping Granger and your wife are at the same place we were supposed to be at."

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**Draco and the Potter's meet!**

**Was it too pally?**

**Should I have added some more hate?**

**Let me know!**


	31. Chapter 31

**Hearty Thanks to;**

**witchnimbus23**  
><strong>igenac<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>My Bad Addiction<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>audraell<strong>  
><strong>LyndahJune<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>Melly2014<strong>  
><strong>Princesskathymalfoy<strong>

**For the reviews!**

**I hope you all had a lovely New Year and have a wonderful year ahead!**

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**CHAPTER 31.**

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"Are you sure they won't follow us?" Harry whispered to Draco.

Draco rolled his eyes as he looked at Harry.

Harry was wearing a black hoodie which was up, presumably to cover his messy give-away hair and black jeans. In the middle of the freaking afternoon.

If that was his idea of a disguise or being discreet, Draco wondered how in the world did he ever manage to sneak out in Hogwarts. Oh yes! The invisibility cloak.

"Potter, how do you survive without your invisibility cloak?" Draco asked sarcastically.

Harry frowned. "You know about my cloak?"

Draco rolled his eyes again. He found himself doing that quite often in Harry's presence. But he had to admit, a slightly more grown up Harry was definitely more relaxed and fun- umm okay fun to be around than the silent, morose Hogwarts Harry.

"Harry I pretty much know everything about you and everyone Hermione associated with. She likes to talk." Draco said.

Harry nodded knowingly.

"But still, what if Hermione brings her here?" Harry asked looking worried.

"Potter relax! The girls have gone to the spa. Ginny forced Hermione there and Merlin knows she needs a massage to relax. Besides Katherine's joining them for lunch. And Hermione thought that you and I should male bond or something. Mental that woman." Draco shook his head.

Harry laughed. Draco Malfoy just reminded him of Ron at this very moment. He had just fondly admitted how mental Hermione was but still so special to him. Well special enough for him to actually male bond or whatever with Harry Potter. He wouldn't do that for anyone else.

"What's so funny?" Draco asked.

"You just sounded like Ron there for a moment. All through Hogwarts he kept calling Hermione mental." Harry said.

Draco looked a bit uncomfortable at being compared to Harry's late friend. But Harry seemed so casual about it. Like the memory of Ron didn't bother him. In fact he spoke of him quite fondly. He seemed at peace. Maybe he had his closure. Now only if Hermione could...

But she was getting better.

Her parents had come over for dinner last night and the 6 of them had a great time. Well, at least he was sure 5 of them had had a good time.

He on the other hand was antsy all the time. He was officially meeting Hermione's parents for the first time.

Of course they were gracious and apologised whole heartedly for being so prejudiced in the past. They accepted Draco with open arms. Literally. Mr. Granger, Draco learned the hard way, was a hugger. And he didn't spare Draco.

Draco had shot Hermione a save me look as Mr. Granger had enveloped him and all he got back was concealed muted laughter and relief in Hermione's eyes. She sure was glad that after all these years her parents had finally accepted Draco.

It had been only 3 days, but surprisingly enough, Draco had found himself needing no self control. He was behaving as promised to Hermione and wasn't even trying.

If he forgot all about their formative years, Draco could actually spend time with the Potter's and dare he say it? Even enjoy himself.

He found Harry and Ginny's relationship really entertaining.

They loved each other to pieces; a blind man could see that. But Harry still didn't waste any opportunity to argue with her. Obviously Ginny would always win. Even though she knew Harry was only riling her up out of habit, she could never refuse a refreshing argument.

They didn't care that they were bickering in front of Draco and Hermione; they behaved as though they had been friends for years.

Harry would often make suggestive comments to Ginny and most would end up in her pointing her wand at him accompanied by furious blushing. But after only 3 days of staying with the couple, Hermione and Draco had both realised that when such things happened, Harry and Ginny would mysteriously disappear under the pretext of power naps for dear old Ginny. But the very non-subtle slamming and clicks of the door into locking and silencing spells were enough to say otherwise.

The first time it had happened, it was 4 in the afternoon. They had all just napped and were enjoying a cup of coffee with cupcakes when Harry and Ginny had gotten into an argument.

How one needed to go back for a power nap after an afternoon nap, Hermione and Draco would never understand.

Of course, the hard door slam and muffliato charm caused Hermione to go red all over and she quickly got up to clean the dishes manually so Draco would not see her face.

Draco obviously was shocked too but not that embarrassed. He was rather impressed by Potter. He chuckled away as Hermione furiously scrubbed the already clean mugs.

Well the Potter's were far from boring. That much was for sure.

"So don't worry your messy head so much Potter. The girls are having a relaxing afternoon. _We_ on the other hand are supposed to have an awkward man date." Draco said drily.

Harry laughed. "Oh lighten up Malfoy. It's not so bad. You promised me Australia's famous dessert. I'll be nice to you just for doing that for me." He joked. "But don't tell Ginny okay?" He added getting serious.

Draco shook his head in disbelief. Ginny was a smart woman. And Harry knew that. Draco was sure that Harry knew that Ginny knew he would be off eating dessert somewhere. Yet he tried hiding it.

Draco reckoned it probably was a part of the games they played. They had been married for quite a few years, but they certainly kept their marriage entertaining.

"Potter! You do know that she will still find out?" Draco asked.

Harry scowled. "Yeah I know. But what can one do? I'll just tell her we split it since you couldn't finish it all on your own eh?"

Draco laughed. "You are ridiculous."

"Fine mock me. But let me tell you, this all started at Hogwarts. If it wasn't for the wonderful treacle tart and the amazing desserts the elves made, I wouldn't really have such a sweet tooth. Besides, I don't think I even knew how cake tasted until Hagrid got me one for my 11th birthday while rescuing me from the Dursleys." Harry said sadly.

Draco just looked at Harry. After some time he said, "Potter! You really want me to buy that and feel sorry for you? I can totally tell you're milking it. Does Ginny fall for that crap?"

"Damn!" Harry said. "That usually gets everyone. When did you get so smart Malfoy? In the beginning Ginny used to buy it. But now she just kicks my ass."

Draco laughed again. "I'm a Slytherin remember. We usually know when we are being manipulated."

"Oh well." Harry said sadly.

"Fine." Draco sighed. "I won't tell her. But that doesn't mean she won't know already."

"I know!" Harry said happily. "But it's worth a try."

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"Hermione!" Katherine yelled from across the restaurant. She came hurrying to the table where Hermione and a pretty red head were sitting at. "It's been too long." She hugged her.

Hermione laughed. "Katherine! I saw you 3 days ago."

Katherine frowned. "Yeah well I know. But for someone I meet every day and spend two nights at the hospital with every week, 3days is far too long."

"Oh that's so sweet." Hermione said. "I missed you too. I'm so glad you could come for lunch today. I'd like you to meet Ginny, my best friend from England."

Katherine and Ginny exchanged pleasantries as Hermione told them a little about each other.

Soon they had ordered and the table was filled with delicious food and wine. Well, iced tea for Ginny, though she longingly kept looking at the wine bottle from the corner of her eye.

"Oooh Hermione." Katherine said excitedly as she wiped her lips and reached for her purse. "I completely forgot to tell you."

She fished out a brown and gold envelope from her purse and handed it to Hermione.

"The hospital is having its annual charity ball day after tomorrow. I was told you had declined to go but I got you the invite nonetheless. I'm hoping to convince you to go this year." Katherine said.

Hermione frowned. "The charity ball? Really Katherine, you know I'm not interested in all these things. I didn't even go last year."

"I know!" Katherine said. "But come on Hermione, it'll be fun. Besides guests are allowed too! I figured Draco and the Potter's could come too. Please Hermione, it will be great!" She urged.

Hermione's brow furrowed in thought. She looked at Ginny and then back at Katherine, who still had an expectant expression across her face.

"Oh... I don't know, Harry and Ginny are here only for a while. I don't want to go to some ball when I can spend time with them." Hermione contemplated.

"Oh Hermione. It's okay. It's a brilliant idea actually. If we do go to the ball with you we'll still be spending time with you. And besides, a ball equals shopping!" Ginny said excitedly. "This should be fun! Come on, Katherine's right. Let's go!"

"Ginny ..." Hermione said with a sceptical expression.

"Please Hermione!" Ginny made puppy dog eyes. "It'll probably be my last ball where I could fit in a pretty dress without looking like a balloon."

She looked so sad and forlorn that Hermione caved.

"Fine." Hermione said unhappily. "You Ginny Potter should have been in Slytherin. Has Draco been teaching you that look?"

Ginny beamed instantly. "Oh yeah. I saw it on him when he suggested you should call your parents over. I decided then I should try it on you. I didn't know the opportunity would present itself so soon."

All of them laughed.

"He is bad influence." Hermione declared.

"Oh shush. I think he's fun. I wonder why he was so not fun in school. We could've been friend's ages ago." Ginny said.

Hermione smiled. Out of all her friends, Ginny had been the first to accept Draco when Hermione had revealed that they were friends.

Ginny had always been understanding and Hermione was really thankful for that.

"So it's settled then?" Katherine piped. "All of you are coming?"

"Oh but we'll have to ask the guys." Hermione said.

"Oh Hermione. You _ask_ Draco. I'll just _tell_ Harry." Ginny said mischievously.

"Unbelievable." Hermione said as she laughed and they paid the bill and left the restaurant.

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"What? No thank you." Draco declared breezily as he pulled a bottle of coke from the refrigerator and plonked on the couch reaching out for the salted cashews.

"What? Why? Come on Draco! If I'm being dragged into this, I'm not going down alone!" Hermione whined.

Harry and Ginny sat on the other couch very close to each other, Ginny leaning into him and Harry's arm around her. They watched silently.

"You work there! You're obligated to go. Me? I'm a free bird." Draco said.

"But Harry and Ginny are going. You won't be alone." Hermione tried persuading him.

Draco laughed. "Really Granger? You're tempting me with them?"

Harry laughed out loud too but a cutting look from Hermione made him stop midway and he retreated back to his wife who was giving him an equally icy glare.

"Okay. Matt's going to be there too." Hermione tried.

Draco cocked his head to a side and pretended to think deeply. In less than a second he turned back to Hermione and said "Naah. I don't think Matt's going to be as tempting either."

Hermione made her lips in a thin line and folded her hands across her chest. "So if we all are going to be at a ball what in the world are you going to do alone?"

"Well... Let me see. What other exciting options do I have? I could catch the semi final of the football game on the TV or I could go to a club or probably cook something new or I don't know... Go to sleep? All of the above sound way more exciting than a boring charity ball." Draco said.

"Fine. If you want to be that way, suit yourself. I didn't go last year either but this year I thought since all my friends are insisting we could all go and have a good time. But obviously that's not enough of a good time for you." Hermione said coldly. "So to help you, from all of your options, I'd suggest you go to a club. Find a skank there and make her your number whatever number you are on these days."

Then she turned her back and retreated into her room slamming the door on her way in.

The silence that followed her was deafening.

Harry began to shift uncomfortably in his place and Draco just stood there with his coke in hand, mouth open in confusion. Probably wondering what the hell just happened in there.

"Okay then." Ginny said sharply and got up immediately. "Harry stay here and talk to Hermione when she comes out. Malfoy, in your living room NOW." She said and popped out of Hermione's flat.

Draco turned to look at Harry with a quizzical expression on his face. Harry just shrugged. "I usually do what she says when she says it in that tone."

Draco looked disbelievingly at Harry.

"Believe me Malfoy. You don't want 2 women to be mad at you. Especially if they happen to be these two." Harry advised.

"Whatever. I'm not scared of Red." Draco scoffed rather feebly.

"Well then you should be." Harry said grimly.

Draco gave him a dazed look again.

"Look I'll say this fast but you better hear me well. You have full reason to be scared. Of both of them. You don't know, but they'll get you. Hermione will give you the silent treatment and you'll be so sick of it that you'll wish shed yell or something. But then Ginny will yell her cords out and you'll be wishing she'd shut the hell up. And when both of them do it together? It's lethal man. I swear it is. You don't want to be at the receiving end of that." Harry shook his head as if someone had died.

Draco gulped. He couldn't believe that Harry freaking Potter was trying to scare the pants off him and was succeeding.

He shook his head to clear it and mainly to clear the Goosebumps across his neck.

"Look Potter, no need to exaggerate. Now be cool. I'm going to see what Ginny wants. Not because I think your warning means anything, which I don't by the way, but just because she's alone in my flat and I should uh keep her company." Draco said.

Harry smirked and patted Draco on the shoulder. "You do what you have to do man."

Draco gave him a scoffing look and popped out. **  
>.<strong>

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When he entered his flat he saw Red (as he had nick-named her that) pacing on his carpet.

"Finally. I didn't think that NOW meant 5 minutes later." Ginny said sarcastically.

Draco raised his hands. "Whoa woman. Will you relax? What's got your wand in such a tight knot?"

Ginny swirled and put her hands on her hips. Very Molly Weasley-ish.

"Are you out of your freaking mind?" She yelled.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Draco asked looking genuinely surprised.

"Why in the world would you decline a chance to go to the ball with Hermione?"

"Are you joking? It's not like it's the opportunity of a lifetime. It's going to be a boring hospital charity ball... Wait wait wait... Back up there for a second." Draco suddenly said. "What did you say? With Hermione? What do you mean by that?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "You are so stupid Malfoy. Obviously with Hermione. Who else? I'll be going with Harry and Katherine's bringing Matt. Do the maths." She ordered.

Draco swallowed. "You mean she was asking me to go to this ball with her?"  
>More eye rolling.<p>

"As in.." Draco swallowed again. "As in, you mean.. Like her date?"

Ginny put up her hands exasperatedly. "Do you want me to spell it out to you?"

"Ohhhh." Draco said deflated as he sat down on his sofa. "Damn."

"Damn right damn genius." Ginny offered.

"How dense are you Malfoy? If you looked at her that way when she wore a simple dress, I wonder where your eyeballs will be when you see her wearing what we've bought today." Ginny said smoothly.

Draco's throat turned dry. He looked at Ginny beseechingly.

Ginny shook her head. "What were you thinking really? Some slytherin you are."

"I know. I'm such a git." Draco said.

"And an idiot." Ginny added.

"Tell me about it." He said as he ran his hands haphazardly across his face. "Wait a minute!" He shouted. "Why the hell are you telling me this? And why would you think I cared about going with her in whatever she was wearing?"

Ginny looked at him with a bored expression on her face. "Really Malfoy? Now you ask me this?"

"Yeah. I ask this now. Why do you care and what do you know?" He asked childishly.

She rolled her eyes again and came and sat next to Draco. She put a hand on his shoulder. He didn't flinch like he thought he would have.

"Draco" she said kindly. "I've seen you look at her. A blind person could see what you feel for her. Although Hermione is way past blind in such cases. But it's pretty obvious. Even Harry is aware."

"Wow." Draco thought. If Potter had figured it out then he must have been plenty obvious.

"And you're okay with this? I mean not only is she your sister-in-law and best friend but it's me, Draco Malfoy." Draco said.

"Malfoy, we forgot everything the day you started out wanting to help us find Hermione. Well, I forgave you and forgot it all when Hermione told me about her friendship with you. So I'm the last person you should be worried about." Ginny said. "Besides, look what you've done for her. She's coming out of her shell all thanks to you. We are here together and she's urging you to attend a social event and not the other way round. Don't you realise how far she's come? And it's all because of you. How could anyone have a problem with you? Clearly you're good for her."

Draco looked down at his rug all the time Ginny was speaking.

"I was just being a friend. I mean anyone would have done that. If you had found her, you would have gotten her out of her funk." Draco said softly.

"But we didn't. You did. You got her back to living her life and not just existing. That counts for something Draco. Don't you think?" Ginny said.

"You called me Draco!" Draco exclaimed.

"Well yeah. So? Get used to it." Ginny smirked.

Draco smiled. But soon turned glum again. "I'm not good enough for her Ginny." He said using her name too. And it didn't sound unnatural.

"Says who?" Ginny dared.

"Come on. You can forgive but can you really forget? I'm Draco Malfoy. Son of death eater. Almost death eater. Slytherin. Casanova. Pureblooded and so much more that just won't allow it to work between us." Draco claimed.

"You are so so stupid." Ginny shook her head. "You're good enough to be friends with her but not good enough to be more?"

"Ginny ..."

"No. You are being so dumb. Is all I can say. You may be half of those things you said you were. But that was all in the past. Besides, your father was a death eater. You are not your father. Do you forget that eventually you declined Voldemort's offer and turned to the order? If that's not atonement enough for you I don't know what is." Ginny declared.

Draco stood there hearing these words come out of the mouth of the person whose family he had hated for almost all his childhood life.

He had stopped hating them the moment he had befriended Hermione. But today he learned why really Hermione cared and loved them so much. They were worth so much more than any bigoted, pureblood family ever would be.

"So you're okay with this? And Harry?" Draco asked.

Ginny laughed. "Didn't peg you to be the types to take Harry's permission."  
>"Oh please." Draco fake scoffed. "Was just asking out of curiosity."<p>

"Yeah right." Ginny pretended to play along. "He's fine with it too. In fact more than fine after spending some time with you."

"Time? It's barely been 4 days." Draco said.

"It's enough." Ginny said confidently. **  
>.<strong>

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**Kay then.**

I wanted to show some Malfoy-Potter bonding!

I know 4 days and one chapter is too little time to create such bonds but Ginny and Harry are magnanimous people. Plus they love Hermione!

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Thanks for reading!

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	32. Chapter 32

**Thank you to;**

**ChelseyJ**  
><strong>gimarkley2013<strong>  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
><strong>audraell<strong>  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>cutiepiehp<strong>  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>Melly2014<strong>  
><strong>DesereaFlare<strong>  
><strong>CinziaTwut<strong>  
><strong>lil lizzz<strong>  
><strong>My Bad Addiction<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>cooly115<strong>

**For all the reviews!**

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**CHAPTER 32.**

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"Oh my Godric!... What the... Draco! What the hell?" Hermione shrieked as she pulled her night shirt over herself quickly.

Draco laughed. "You've got it inside out Hermione."

"It's a miracle I managed to get it on me at all you prat!" Hermione continued yelling. "What were you thinking? This is my bedroom. I could have just come from the shower. I thought we had agreed on apparating only in the living room."

"But you walked in on _me_ in _my_ bathroom once." Draco pouted.

"That was a mistake!" Hermione bellowed.

"Well, apology accepted. We are on even ground now." Draco said coolly.

"Why, may I ask are you here in my bedroom so late at night ferret?" Hermione gave in.

"You wouldn't open the door or talk to me!" Draco complained. "So I had to take drastic measures."

"Good for you. You succeeded then. What is it now?" Hermione spat.

"I have something for you." Draco cajoled her.

"Look Malfoy, I'm not a child. I won't be bribed by presents." Hermione said stiffly.

"Hmmm." Draco mused, removing a packet from his pocket and enlarging the surprise. "Not even if they are wine soaked strawberries dipped in dark chocolate?"

Hermione's eyes widened.

That bastard!

That were her most favourite thing in the world and he knew it!

And he was taking advantage of it!

Well, she would show him. She wouldn't give in.

Oh no! But she really wanted to give in.

The succulent shiny wine dripping strawberries with the sinful cover of chocolate was beckoning her.

She was so close to giving in.

"I'm not Harry, Draco. You can't just buy me with a couple of chocolate strawberries."She said weakly although she was trying her best to stay strong.

"I'm what?" Draco looked scandalised. "Who says I'm buying you? I just happened to get them for Harry and I remembered you like them too. So I dropped by with them. If you don't want them it's alright. I'll just throw them. I'm too stuffed."

Draco motioned to leave but Hermione stopped him.

"Throw them?" Hermione asked incredulously. "Are you insane? Just refrigerate them Malfoy. No need to waste them."

Draco smirked. "Or you could just have them now Granger."

Hermione paused to think. She had already brushed her teeth. And she hadn't had anything sweet for almost 5 days. So a couple of strawberries shouldn't hurt.

She could always brush her teeth again.

Oh damn! Who was she kidding?

"Fine!" She made a show of annoyance. "Only because you landed up in the middle of the night in my bedroom, invading my privacy. I'm only forgiving you because of the strawberries."

"Fine by me." Draco said emotionlessly.

She took one from Draco and bit into some luscious juicy goodness.

The juices flowed into her mouth. The acidity of the fruit combined with the wine, swirled into a magical mixture in her mouth and she closed her eyes in enjoyment.

Next she bit off a piece with some chocolate and the sweetness just rightly complemented the acidity of the juices.

"Mmmmmmm." She moaned as she continued to devour her treat with tightly shut eyes.

A bit of the juice was dripping from the side of her lips but Hermione didn't seem to care as she continued chewing.

Draco meanwhile was transfixed. He knew she was only eating an innocent strawberry but the sight of her in front of him thoroughly enjoying the dessert had left him breathless and his mouth dry.

Never in his life had he imagined that when he would offer the dessert as a peace offering to her, she would turn the tables in such a manner.

She was so bloody sexy right now, buried in her succulent indulgence that Draco was gobsmacked. He had always found her endearing and many times sexy but at this moment he was sure that he'd never seen her sexier. And what made her even sexier was that she was completely unaware of the effect she was having on him.

To her, it was a silly act of devouring her favourite dessert but Draco was committing this sight to memory.

If he had a penseive, this would be one of the first memories he would be putting in.

He almost swallowed his tongue as she licked her sticky fingers. His mouth had gone supremely dry and he was finding trouble breathing.

"Mmmmm. That was sinful!" Hermione preened.

Sinful indeed, Draco chastised himself. If only she knew what thoughts were going through his mind, sinful would have a new meaning altogether.

"Draco? Draco!" Hermione said loudly.

Draco shook himself and shut his gaping mouth as Hermione looked at him.

"Thank you. Even though I'm still mad at you, there was no need to punish the strawberries." Hermione said shrewdly.

"Ummhmmmm." Draco mumbled.

"What? Why are you really here Draco? I'm sure it wasn't only this?" Hermione asked.

Draco managed to retrieve his voice that had gotten lost and said. "Hermione .. I .. Wanted to say sorry. I'm really sorry for being such a huge git."

Hermione didn't say anything else.

"I .. I was being just stupid. The ball sounded so boring. But then again as you said, its all about being with friends and if going there makes you happy, I'll go with you. You've come everywhere with me. The least I can do is go with you." Draco said sincerely.

Hermione smiled.

"What? Why are you smiling? Did I say something wrong again?" Draco asked.

"You called Harry and Ginny friends!" Hermione said excitedly. "You consider them as friends!"

"What? I .. No.. I meant your friends." Draco tried feebly.

"No no. You can't take it back now Malfoy." Hermione laughed evilly.

"Damn!" He said to himself. "Whatever Granger."

Hermione leaped at him and hugged him tightly. "I love you, you little ferret." She said sweetly in his ear.

The words were spoken so innocently, in a friendly manner but they still invoked such warmth that he could probably conjure a patronus in Azkaban with this memory.

He found himself grinning from ear to ear as he continued hugging her, not even bothering to remove her hair from under his nose.

He didn't trust himself to speak at the moment so he just settled into her hug.

.

.

_"I hate balls!" Hermione Granger groaned as she slammed her quill onto her parchment._

_"Hey hey! Careful there Granger. You've just spent an hour writing that essay. You don't want ink all over it do you?" Draco asked her._

_Hermione promptly repositioned her quill._

_"Draco why do we need to have a Yule ball? Isn't it enough that we're having the Triwizard Tournament? Who has the time for a stupid ball? Harry hasn't even figured out his clue yet. There's no time for enjoyment." She almost yelled._

_"Hermione is there something bothering you?" Draco asked concerned._

_Hermione sighed. "I'm just worried about Harry."_

_"That's not it. You're irritated and it's not the ball." Draco said with surety._

_Hermione sighed again. "You're right. It's Ron."_

_"What did that bloody fool do now? I swear if he's troubled you I will..."_

_"You'll what Draco?" Hermione laughed. "Make him puke slugs again?"_

_Draco's lips had formed a thin line and he wasn't smiling._

_Hermione took his hand into hers and said gently. "I admit Ron's a stupid prat. And more often than not you want to box him. And although I find that awfully sweet, you have to remember that in public we aren't friends. Imagine the surprise if people found out why you punched Ron."_

_Draco sighed. "I hate all this secrecy."_

_"I do too." Hermione stated. "But it was your idea remember? Although at first I didn't care much but it's also your safety at stake. And I won't compromise on that."_

_"What did that weasel do this time?" Draco asked to divert the topic._

_Hermione found herself getting angry all over again._

_"That idiot! I don't know what he thinks about himself. He's so dense sometimes that a log of wood would have more intelligence than him." Hermione bubbled with anger._

_Draco chuckled. She shot him an annoyed look and he sobered up and put on a straight face again._

_"Today he realised that I'm a girl. And he just assumed that no one would want to go to the ball with me. He was having tough luck asking or getting a girl so why not ask the last option; Hermione Granger! Of course I'm a girl! I've bloody been a girl for 14 years! That blind idiot!" Hermione fumed. "How dare he insinuate that I was lying about having a date!"_

_"Wow! That sodding idiot!" Draco fumed himself. "He wouldn't know a girl if it was spelt out for him."_

_"It's like I'm the last resort! And when I said I already had a date he refused to believe me! He called me a liar!" Hermione yelled._

_"Just one punch Hermione! I'll make up some silly excuse to hit him. Please please let me do this. His idiocy has reached the limits. How can he imagine that he can get a date and you can't? I mean, look at you!" Draco said before he could realise what he had said._

_Hermione looked at him quizzically._

_"I mean.. That come on.. The weasel is just a mop of red hair and freckles and Merlin alone knows what dress robes he'll wear. No girl will want to go out with him." Draco mumbled hurriedly, trying to insult Ron as much as he could so that Hermione would forget what he had said previously._

_"Draco! That's not nice. You know I don't like it when you insult people on their appearances or wealth." Hermione said predictably._

_"I know Granger. But he insulted you. And you're not letting me punch him. The least I could do is insult him back." Draco said relieved that she had taken the bait._

_Hermione rolled her eyes. "Boys are just so immature."_

_"Even Krum?" Draco asked teasingly._

_Hermione blushed. "Well, Draco I think we both have work to do."_

_"Hermione, you do know that I would have loved to take you to the ball with me, right?" Draco said seriously. "As friends of course." He added quickly._

_Hermione smiled warmly. "I know Draco. I wish I could too. I never would have said yes to Victor if you hadn't forced me to. It would have been nice to go with you."_

_Draco sighed. "I'm sorry." He said simply._

_It was difficult enough seeing that oaf Krum babble on in broken English to Hermione and make a fool of himself. He obviously fancied her. That's why he had asked her to the ball. He had felt so annoyed at Krum for that. But then he started wondering why he cared who asked Hermione out._

_It's not like she could go with him anyway. So how did it matter who she went with?_

_But then he thought that even though the weasel was supremely slow and rather dumb, desperate times would call for desperate measures. Draco suspected that Ron felt something for Hermione, although he was too oblivious and dumb to understand those feelings._

_Luckily, Hermione returned none of those feelings. Neither Krum's nor the Weasel's. Wait! Luckily? Why would it be lucky for him?_

_Well, she was his friend. So obviously he would be protective of her. He would never want some silly boy to get close to her or worse for her to start fancying some silly boy._

_That is why when he learned that Krum had asked her to the ball he figured that she was better off going with him than Ron, in case Ron got over his swollen head and asked her; if she was dateless she would go with Ron. But if she already had a date she would decline Ron._

_And in the present scheme of things, Draco decided that Hermione with Krum was lesser of the two evils._

_Krum would ship off to Bulgaria after the tournament and he was so stupid that Hermione would never fall for him._  
><em>He was less of a threat than Ron. So yes! She should go with Krum.<em>

_Wait! Threat? Malfoy what is wrong with you? He asked himself._

_Why was he getting so worked up? Hermione was perfectly capable of deciding whom to fancy or not. What was his problem?_

_Shaking his head, he decided not to think about it and went on to convince Hermione about Krum._

_"It's not your fault." Hermione said. "I hate these balls anyway. And Ron's just spoilt my mood."_

_Draco took her hand in his and said. "Well then. We'll just have to do something to unspoil it, won't we?" He said cheekily._

_Hermione raised her eyebrow at him._

_Oh! The eyebrow!_

_"Look, tomorrow is Christmas eve and the ball is day after so we have the whole evening free tomorrow and I have a surprise planned for you. So meet me at 7 in the Room of Requirement. and let's say that tomorrow will be a dress rehearsal for the Yule ball." He said with a glint in his eyes._

_Hermione looked sceptically at him. "What is the surprise Draco?"_

_"Well it won't be a surprise if I tell you now will it?" He smirked. "Please Hermione, trust me. You'll have fun. I promise."_

_"Hmmm. Okay. If you say so." Hermione smiled. "Now can we get back to work?"_

_._

_._

_Draco was pacing in the Slytherin common room late that night._

_It was easy to ignore his inner voice when he was with Hermione at the library. But now in his solitude, he found himself wondering about his recent; well not exactly recent feelings but recent and gradual realisation of feelings._

_To say he was confused would be an understatement._

_He enjoyed Hermione's company greatly. She was his best friend and there hadn't gone a day in the last year and a half when they hadn't met._

_They would meet secretly in school and even during holidays, most often they tried staying in school but when they could not, they constantly kept in touch via the two way diary._

_And Dobby was forever ready to help Draco meet Hermione._

_It was safe to say that Draco couldn't spend even one day without meeting or at least speaking with her._

_And by her actions it seemed that it was the same on her end. She seemed to light up whenever she saw him. Even if it had been only 8 hours since she'd met him last, she would greet him so warmly that an outsider would say that they were meeting after ages._

_She told him everything. Absolutely everything. Even stuff that went on with Harry and Ron. He also found that although he had been raised to keep secrets and feelings pent up, it was easy to share with Hermione._

_She was slowly and steadily chipping away the bad Malfoy traits from him without even knowing it. It just was the goodness that emanated from her that made him feel like being worthy of her._

_That they were inseparable as the best of friends was clear to him._

_But recently he had noticed that he craved to be with her more. He sought her out amongst crowds and whenever she gave him secret smiles that were meant only for him, his insides would do a weird jumbling that he couldn't explain._

_He found himself paying attention to how she smelt and he could close his eyes and find Hermione if he ever got a whiff of her hair._

_He would sit closer to her when they had a chance and would find reasons to touch her or brush past. Her touch, which earlier had been completely normal now caused a wave of awareness in the form of pleasant sensations._

_There was an electric air between them whenever they hung out. He tried to ignore them as much as he could but as days passed, they became more prominent; just like her beauty._

_Draco had never thought her to be bad looking but now he found himself gazing at her when she wasn't looking. He could spend hours just looking at her smooth milky skin and those unbelievably expressive eyes._

_He hadn't noticed much before but her eyes seemed to speak volumes. She always claimed that Draco knew exactly how she felt and what mood she was in. This was all thanks to her eyes. He had learned to read her eyes so expertly only because they gave her emotions away and Draco paid close attention._

_She constantly complained about her hair but he found it adorable. They added character to her look and it was so Hermione Granger that he couldn't imagine her with any other hair._

_All in all, Draco Malfoy was thinking about Hermione Granger almost all the time._

_He put it off at first but when Krum asked her to the Yule ball, his internal reaction to it really shook him. He was livid. And how. How dare he, a guest of Hogwarts that too, have the audacity to ask her out?_

_But then again, Hermione was single and she was beautiful. Sure she didn't see herself that way and many idiots in school also didn't think so but Draco knew it was just a matter of time that Hermione would bloom into her true colours and then there would be many boys to keep her away from._

_Again, Draco wondered why he cared so much about keeping her away from the boys. She had a right to choose whomever she wanted to be with._

_But why did it feel so wrong then? Like it was wrong for her to be with anyone else. So wrong._

_He knew that Ron would be one of the first and strongest contenders for her affection. He couldn't exactly pinpoint it but he was sure that Ron had feelings for her that he himself hadn't realised. And it would be only too soon before he realised and acted on them. But then again he was extremely dense so maybe he would take long._

_He normally wouldn't have worried but he knew that Hermione and Ron were close too. Not like Harry and Hermione. Draco had no qualms about Harry. He was like a brother to her. But the dynamics with Ron were different and he was aware that if given a chance, Hermione could reciprocate his feelings._

_Draco didn't know why the idea of Ron and Hermione made him so sick. It was as bad as the idea of Hermione with anyone else but that anyone else being Ron just made it all the more worse. Whether it was because he was a Weasley and all time enemy or whether it was because he too was Hermione's close friend he didn't know._

_But all that he knew right now was that Hermione was extremely special to him and he was definitely not enjoying the idea or thought of sharing her with anyone._

_He stopped his train of thought midway, not wanting to acknowledge anything more tonight. It was hard enough admitting most of his possessiveness as it was._

_He went to bed thinking about his surprise for Hermione. He hoped she would like it._

_He didn't know what prompted him to do it._

_He had considered it ever since it was known that a Yule ball was happening and Hermione had been upset that they wouldn't be able to go together._

_He hoped that Hermione wouldn't be put off or worse confused by his surprise tomorrow._

_The more he thought about it, the more romantic the entire idea seemed._

_Which was ridiculous of course; why would he do anything romantic for Hermione?_

_It was absurd. Wasn't it?_

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**Hey there readers!**

**A little flash and a little make up!**

**i hope you enjoyed it!**

**next up will be the surprise for Hermione!**


	33. Chapter 33

**CHAPTER 33.**

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_Draco fiddled with his clip on tie for the 17th time._

_He couldn't fathom how muggles wore such constricting articles of clothing. And what purpose did it serve either way?_

_He sighed and looked in the mirror._

_His reflection made him smile. He may be a better Draco Malfoy, but vanity was seeping through Malfoy blood and right now as he looked at himself, he found himself satisfied and rather pleased with his look._

_If his father saw him, he didn't know who would die first. He could be Avada-ed in an instant, the moment his father noticed the muggle clothes on him or another case could be that his father would probably go into cardiac arrest due to the shock._

_He chuckled at his morbid thoughts. Luckily, tonight was a secret and no one except Hermione would be seeing him so thankfully no one would be dying tonight._

_He was excited. He couldn't wait for Hermione to see him. He was wearing formal muggle clothing for the first time and he really wanted to witness her reaction. She simply loved formal muggle clothes on men. She found it very attractive._

_Not that he was trying to attract her or anything. He just wanted to surprise her._

_He found himself wondering how Hermione would look. He would be the first to see her. He had told her to dress exactly like she would the next day for the Yule ball. He was positive she would look absolutely radiant._

_He looked at his watch, a gift from Hermione for his birthday. There were ten minutes left for 7pm. He decided to go into the Room of Requirement and make sure all preparations were in order. Not that it was necessary. The Room was ever equipped with everything that was required._

_But he really wanted to be there to see her face when she entered and the best way to do that would be to be in there himself._

_So he walked on the 3rd floor corridor thrice reciting the words 'I need a place to surprise Hermione' while he paced. Instantly, a long carved mahogany door appeared in front of him._

_Smiling excitedly, he pushed the door and entered._

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_Sure enough, 8 minutes later he heard the door to the Room open._

_He dimmed the lights immediately._

_He heard Hermione's heels click on the floor as she tentatively walked into the room._

_"Draco?" She called out hesitantly. "Are you here?"_

_Just then a soft spotlight fell on her. She jerked up her head to find the source of the light and then looked around for signs of Draco._

_Draco looked at her and his breath got caught in his throat._

_He was so glad that he had seen her today. Because if he had seen her looking like she did now at the Ball tomorrow, he was sure he would throw caution to the winds and just dance with her all night holding her close to himself and never letting her go even once. Krum could go screw himself for all he cared._

_But now that he had seen her and he did have her to himself for the rest of the evening, he had time to prepare himself for keeping a distance from her at the Ball. He would really need self control._

_"Draco?" Hermione whispered. "You're freaking me out."_

_"You look stunning Hermione." Draco finally said out loud without faltering._

_"Thanks." Hermione said out shyly. "But it's really strange talking to you and not being able to see you."_

_Draco swished his wand and instantly the spotlight diminished and the whole room illuminated with thousands of candles suspended midair and Christmas lights all over._

_As soon as she could see, Hermione's eyes widened out of her sockets and Draco smiled at her reaction._

_The room had taken the form of the Great hall. The ceiling was as enchanted as ever and right now multiple stars were twinkling high in the dusky sky._

_The hall had been transformed into a ballroom floor and was set up exactly how it was going to be for the Yule ball. Well, minus all the professors and the students of course._

_"Draco!" Hermione breathed, still looking around in awe._

_Draco finally came out and stood in front of her. Hermione tore her eyes away from the hall and looked at him._

_She looked at him even more surprised than she was when she saw the hall._

_"Draco! You're wearing a suit!" She almost yelled excitedly. "Oh my God Draco! You look positively handsome tonight!" She said as she hugged him enthusiastically. "Thank you so much. This is really a surprise. It's all beautiful."_

_Draco beamed at Hermione. So far so good._

_He was so nervous about his surprise that he had been worrying about it since last night. But seeing Hermione's reaction had been worth it._

_"You really like it?" Draco asked. "I just thought that since we couldn't go together at the Hogwarts Yule Ball, I could at least take you to the Malfoy Yule Ball where you and I are the only guests. That way we can have our own Ball and tomorrow you can be Krum's."_

_Hermione wrinkled her nose as she extricated herself from his hug but still kept her arms around his waist._

_"I'm not 'Krum's anything' as you say Draco. I'm only going with him because you talked me into it and now I've to do the opening dance with him. Do you know how rubbish I am at dancing? Professor McGonagall almost fainted trying to teach me the moves. I've always been such a fast learner." Hermione moaned._

_"Relax Hermione. It's just a dance. I'm sure you'll do fine." Draco reassured her._

_"Yeah." Hermione scoffed. "Easy for you to say. You've taken dancing lessons along with the umpteen other lessons you've had to take."_

_Draco couldn't really say anything to refute that. It was true after all._

_So he just dimmed the lights with the help of some non verbal magic he had learned especially for this moment and he held his hand out in front of Hermione._

_Hermione looked at him questioningly with one eyebrow raised._

_His heart almost stopped beating when she did that. Damn! Why did she have to go about doing such things that caused his brain to malfunction? And why the hell did she have such an effect on him?_

_Nevertheless, she hesitantly took his hand. "Just follow my lead." He whispered into her ear._

_He took his her hand and flipped it and held it firmly into his. He could feel the smooth skin entwined in his rougher hand and he had to fight every urge to rub his thumb lovingly over her hand._

_Why did holding her hand feel so right? Like it should always be this way. Sure they had held hands before but today he just didn't want to let go._

_"Okay. Now look me in the eyes all the time." Draco instructed._

_"Then how will I follow your lead Draco?" She asked nervously._

_Draco laughed kindly. "Granger, you don't need to look look at me to follow me. Just follow your instincts."_

_"I have no instincts when it comes to coordinated moves Draco, why do you think I don't fly or dance?" Hermione asked exasperatedly._

_Draco continued to look at her. He lowered his arm that was on her waist to the small of her back and pulled her closer. He raised the hand which held her hand and gazed deep into her confused eyes._

_He could almost feel her heart beating crazily. But then again it could've been his heart too._

_"Draco..." Hermione whispered roughly._

_"Sshh Granger." He said huskily without even trying. "Just keep looking at me." He said as he made the first move and guided her effortlessly._

_As soon as they started dancing, the music came on and Draco lead Hermione through a series of basic steps that she found were quite easy to follow._

_After a few minutes, she had warmed up and loosened her posture. She even giggled when Draco turned and dipped her low._

_Draco's face broke into a proud grin when he saw her enjoying herself. She had stopped fussing about how bad she was at dancing and she seemed to have forgotten about her supposed left feet._

_The music got faster and they made some mad looking moves which resulted in both of them laughing in between the steps._

_The song got over and Hermione held on to Draco for support. She was still panting from her latest dance. She looked up to find Draco's hair all over his forehead which was shining with beads of sweat._

_She didn't know what took over her but at that moment she was so taken by the look of contentment on his face that she reached out and ran her fingers through his soft hair and cleared his forehead of it._

_Draco's body went through a thousand tingles with her simple touch. He leaned into her hand for prolonged contact but she had already retracted it._

_He felt a sense a loss but not for long. She hugged him and stayed that way for some time. Normally he would have hugged her back but he was so confused with all these new feelings that she was invoking in him that he wasn't sure what to do._

_Hermione hadn't seemed to sense his hesitation. She continued leaning into him. "Draco this was just wonderful. I love your surprise. You practically hijacked the Yule ball for me." She said laughing._

_Draco relaxed as she spoke. He smirked. "Well since I couldn't take you to the Ball, I got the Ball to you."_

_"How kind of you." Hermione said joking. "But seriously, this is one of the nicest things anyone has done for me."_

_Draco's heart warmed at her words. "Well" he said pompously. "You may have to retract your statement soon because what's coming up next may beat what I just did."_

_Hermione's eyes widened. "What else have you planned Draco?" She asked warily._

_Draco rolled his eyes at her worry. "Just trust me Hermione. And close your eyes." He said confidently._

_She looked at him sceptically. "I don't know what you could do to trump this? What can get better than having a personal Yule ball?"_

_"So many questions Granger." Draco sighed. "If you just follow my instructions you'll know yourself soon."_

_"Fine." She huffed as she closed her eyes._

_"You'll love it. I promise you." Draco whispered against her ear as he took her by the hand and led her._

_He made her sit on something that felt like a bench. "Keep your eyes closed. I'll tell you when to open them." Draco murmured._

_"Okay." Hermione whispered back excitedly. Even though she hated the anticipation that surprises caused, she couldn't wait to see what else Draco had in store._

_Draco took a deep breath and thought with concentration, keeping his eyes shut too, willing for the change in the Room to take place._

_He finished thinking and his facial muscles relaxed slightly. He slowly opened his eyes and a huge smile broke into his face._

_"Granger?" He said "open them."_

_Hermione gingerly opened her eyes. No doubt thinking of all possible things with alarming speed._

_She gasped and her eyes got as big as galleons._

_What she saw wasn't anywhere in the list of all the things she was thinking Draco was going to surprise her with._

_It was incredible!_

_"Draco Malfoy! Oh my God I cannot believe you! You remembered? I love you!" Hermione screeched in excitement and jumped the poor unsuspecting Draco and smothered him in a tight hug._

_Draco had expected her to get jumpy. But not on him! He struggled under the sheer force of her hug but he couldn't help grinning widely._

_She had loved it!_

_But what lit his body on fire even more than her impromptu hug were her words. 'I love you'._

_Even though he suspected that she may have said it in the most platonic way possible, it was still the first time she had said it to him. And his heart was fluttering insanely as he repeated those words in his head._

_"This is just perfect!" She said._

_The Room of requirement had changed from being the Great Hall and currently had assumed the look of Paris, a little area by the Seine which was famous for its outdoor cafe and the most amazing view of the city's skyline._

_Every year Hermione and her parents visited Paris for Christmas but this year because of the tournament Hermione had to not only miss her trip but she couldn't even meet her parents._

_She had been upset about this ever since she had heard about the Yule Ball. She hadn't shown it much but Draco had noticed how homesick she had gotten when the Christmas holidays had rolled around the corner._

_With no schoolwork also to keep her occupied she would drift into bouts of nostalgia about Christmas with her family._

_"I'm glad you like it." Draco smiled._

_"Like it? Are you insane? I bloody love it!" Hermione said._

_Draco glanced at his watch. It was almost midnight. Barely 10 seconds to go. He counted backwards from ten in his mind and then kissed Hermione sweetly on the cheek._

_"Happy Christmas Hermione. I promise to do everything I can to always keep you smiling. If you can't get something or be somewhere I'll do my best to get that thing or place or to you." Draco said intensely looking her in the eyes._

_Hermione's eyes softened with a look he couldn't figure out. She broke into a dazzling smile and kissed him back. "Happy Christmas Draco. I'll never leave your side. You are the sweetest person I know. Imagine if the school knew what a big softie you actually are!"_

_"Oh please." He scoffed. "Who are you calling sweet? Or a softie? I'm not Potter."_

_Hermione laughed. "Try as much as you want Malfoy. Your secret's out." She teased._

_Draco rolled his eyes as she continued laughing and linked her arm through his. "But I love you nonetheless." She said as she placed her head on his shoulder and gazed at the stars._

_Draco felt his insides plummet to his centre of gravity yet he felt as if he were floating. He stopped all his analysing and thinking that he had been doing lately. He gave in to the moment and for the first time he admitted it to himself and Hermione, "I love you Granger."_

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"Draco? Draco? Hello!" Hermione chanted his name and snapped her fingers.

Draco was jolted out of his memories by a pinch. "Ouch! Merlin, woman! Be careful! You know I bruise easily."

"Where the hell did you disappear to? It took me forever to get your attention." Hermione complained.

Draco chuckled. "I was thinking about our first Ball together."

Hermione's face registered understanding as she smiled. "Ohh. The Room of requirement. That was one of the best surprises you've ever given me. Of course nothing beats Paris. That blew my mind away."

Draco smiled. "I was just remembering that night."

Hermione laughed. "The night where I discovered what a big lovable teddy bear you actually are."

"I am not!" Draco said indignantly.

"Please." Hermione scoffed. "You so are."

"I am no such thing." Draco pouted. "I'm a mean Quidditch player."

Hermione broke into a gaggle of laughter at that. "Oh by the way, I've been meaning to ask you in a long time but I keep forgetting. Why is your owl named Paris?"

"It's named after the city of course." Draco answered. "And since that was one of your and my best nights together it was only fitting I name her Paris."

Hermione beamed at his reply. "I figured it was that. Just didn't want to get ahead of myself and be pretentious."

Draco laughed. "Of course you can be pretentious when it comes to me. You know how important you are to me."

Hermione smiled. "I know. And you are to me too." She added.

"I know." He smirked.

They sat there silently for a few minutes just like they had the other night. She linked her arm through his and placed her head on his shoulder.

"I love you, you big teddy bear." She whispered.

He winced and made a face of fake irritation. "I love you too Granger."

Just like that night in Paris, Draco thought.

He was sure her declaration of love was as platonic as it had been that night many years ago. And his declaration was far from that. Then and now.

He knew all those years ago that when he had said those words to her she had assumed that he was being affectionate in their usual platonic manner.

But Draco had finally ended his blind sightedness and admitted it to himself and her that night. Even though Hermione hadn't detected the difference.

But when he said it to her now, she shifted slightly and looked up into his eyes and smiled. Draco couldn't make out what was going through her head but it was different from the night in Paris. There was a story that her eyes were begging to tell and although the setting seemed as platonic as it had then, something was different.

She kissed his cheek and got up. "It's getting late. I should probably sleep."

"Hmm. Oh uhh yeah." He said articulately as he got up. "Night Granger."

"Goodnight Malfoy." Hermione said.

Just as he reached his wand to disapparate, Hermione said. "Draco? You kept your promise."

Draco looked at her quizzically. "Which one?"

"Whenever I couldn't reach something or someone you said you would make sure you'd bring that to me." Hermione said quietly.

Draco continued to look confused.

She came closer to him. So close that only his hand with the wand stood between them right now.

"And you brought yourself right to the doorstep of my hospital." She said softly as she tiptoed and kissed his forehead lightly.

She turned and without looking back or saying anything she went into her room and closed the door.

Draco stood alone in her living room, his mouth slightly parted in surprise at her words.

He didn't know what to make out of her statement but he couldn't stop grinning like an idiot till he went to bed that night.

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**Well there you go!**

**Draco's realisation of his love for Hermione!**

**I hope you all liked the chapter!**

**I'm sorry for the delay, I'll try to update more often from now on.**

**Now press that review button and tell me what you think! :D**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	34. Chapter 34

**Thank you all readers! For the reviews and taking me to the 300th mark ! :D**

**mihika**  
><strong>MaronTodai<strong>  
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><strong>cutiepiehp<strong>  
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><strong>audraell<strong>

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**CHAPTER 34.**

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"This is insane Gin! I can't believe you talked me into buying this dress." Hermione wailed as she twirled around trying to catch a 360 of herself in her full length mirror.

"Rubbish Mione." Ginny said absentmindedly as she continued blowing on her nails, trying to dry off her nail paint. "You look absolutely ravishing in that and you know it. Who knows? Maybe you'll find yourself an admirer even."

Hermione looked aghast at Ginny's innocent suggestion.

Ginny saw the look on her face and burst out laughing. "Relax Mione. I'm joking."

"Good then." Hermione said relieved.

"Or not." Ginny said under her breath, her eyes sparkling rather mischievously.

"Did you say something?" Hermione raised her brow.

"Nope. Nothing important." Ginny covered quickly.

"Ginny, I'm really starting to have second thoughts about this dress. Have you even seen the slit? I mean look at all the thigh showing." Hermione huffed worriedly.

"Oh come now Hermione." Ginny said. "It's not that bad. And it's not like you have cellulite all over. You have a good piece of leg and it's not criminal to show some."

Hermione gaped at her friend again. "Ginny Potter! I am so thankful that you are not a boy."

Ginny laughed. "If you have it flaunt it." She shrugged.

Hermione rolled her eyes at her best friend. "But I'm a respected Healer at the hospital Ginny. It doesn't look good showing so much... Leg."

"Please Hermione. It's hardly anything. If you wish we could ask Harry. You know how protective he is of you. If he tells you its fine and he's okay with it then it must be really okay." Ginny reasoned.

Hermione thought about it. What Ginny was saying actually did make sense. Harry would never go out of the way and lose his temper and forbid her to wear anything inappropriate but he would always bring up his brotherly concern or advice in a subtle manner. She could use his discretion over this.

Besides, she really did love the dress. The moment she saw it, she had loved it but when she had put in on, it was like the fabric was caressing her skin and falling in all the right places just as if it was made for her. The colour added life to her look and she felt more alive in it than she had in any of the outfits she had worn lately.

She really did want to wear it to the Ball but she didn't want to come across as indecent. Yes. Harry it is then.

"You're right. We could ask Harry. I'm sure he'll say the right thing." Hermione said. "Unless... You've told him to tell me its okay irrespective." Hermione turned to look at Ginny with clear distrust in her eyes.

Ginny laughed. "Merlin Hermione. I'm flattered you'd think I'm capable of that because I know I am but trust me, I just thought of it. How would I know you'd start doubting the dress that you clearly loved at the store yesterday?"

"Hmmm." Hermione mused. "That is true."

"So shall I get Harry then?" Ginny asked.

Hermione nodded.

"Okay. I'll be in my room doing my hair. Just ask Harry to get me when he's done and I'll come do yours okay?" Ginny asked.

"Sounds good. I know my hair will need your expertise." Hermione joked.

"Oh it'll be great when I'm done with it." Ginny claimed confidently and left to fetch Harry.

Hermione sneaked a look into the mirror again. Her hair was tamed into a chip chop clip but it still was sitting all unruly atop her head. But besides that she felt beautiful.

She didn't know what it was about that dark purple gown but it really made her feel pretty from the inside. Not that Hermione Granger had ever needed anything to feel good about herself, she was always confident. But she had been insecure about her looks as a child, especially because of her teeth and hair and such insecurities never completely go away.

After Ron, she had never bothered much about dolling up and today was the first time she was paying attention to getting all dressed up. And she had to admit that she liked it. Had it not been for Ginny, she probably wouldn't have done all this. But Ginny being her best female friend, knew when Hermione required some girl fun.

She smiled. She was really glad that Ginny and Harry were here. And most of the credit went to Draco. Actually all of it went to Draco. She didn't know after how long she would have been ready to meet them if Draco hadn't insisted on it. She was really glad that she had given into his demands.

And last night when he had come with the strawberries to apologise and agree to go to the Ball with her, she wanted to do an internal dance. She herself didn't care much for the Ball. She was going only because Katherine and Ginny had seemed excited. But the prospect of going to a Ball openly with Draco had sounded exciting to her.

She didn't know why she had wanted to go to the Yule Ball at Hogwarts with Draco so badly then and she didn't understand why it would still hold so much novelty even now.

Draco and she had reminisced about that Christmas Eve all those years ago and it had made her nostalgic. She didn't know what had come over her last night when she had gone and kissed him twice and said those parting words to him.

She hadn't ever intentionally thought of that but at that moment it seemed the most fitting thing to say. Hermione had needed Draco. Even if she hadn't realised it herself. And he had come for her. Of course in a very unconventional manner. But then again, nothing about their friendship had ever been conventional.

"May I come in?" Harry poked his head through Hermione's half open door.

"Oh it's you." Hermione said with a start. "Of course, come on in."

"Who else would it be? I was summoned apparently." Harry teased her.

"Yeah. I wanted to ask your opinion about this dress." Hermione said.

Harry wrinkled his nose. "For the last time Hermione, I'm a bloke. We don't give opinions on dresses. We merely ogle if we like and ignore if we don't. Merlin! Has Ginny put you up to this? She knows I hate giving my advice on all these girly things."

Hermione laughed. "Yes it was Ginny's idea but look I'm not trying to torment you." Hermione turned around giving him a view of her leg through the slit. "What do you think?"

"Merlin Hermione. It's gorgeous. You're gorgeous. It looks fantastic. Surely Ginny would have told you that." Harry said.

"She did. But I'm not too sure about this slit here. It's too high. So you be the judge." Hermione said.

Harry scrutinised her outfit while she twirled around again to give Harry a full view.

"It's not too high Hermione. Besides, the fabric is so flowy that it takes attention of the bare leg and still gives a good few sneaks. It's actually perfect." Harry said.

Hermione gaped at him. She had expected him to convey his message in a curt yes or no. She hadn't expected a full blown explanation of his answer. Ginny you devil! She knew exactly why now Ginny had suggested Harry.

"Harry? Did you just...?" Hermione started.

"I did." Harry said quickly. "But only for you. Don't you dare tell anyone especially Malfoy. I can't be the butt of any more jokes."

Hermione chuckled. "Since when did you know anything about fashion?"

Harry grimaced. "Ginny made me get a television at home. And her idea of us spending quality time together is watching style and fashion shows."

Hermione laughed. "Oh Godric! This is precious. You do know this classifies as blackmail material don't you?"

Harry paled. "Hermione?" He said sadly. "Never pegged you as a blackmailer. You're almost as bad as Ginny and the twins."

"Well, it's an opportunity of a lifetime. I'd have to be a fool to not grab it." Hermione laughed.

"Fine." Harry pouted. "I'll just have to have good faith in you to not use it against me then."

"I'll try." Hermione said feigning sobriety.

"Is that all madam?" Harry asked formally.

"Yes that shall be all." Hermione said with equal fake formality.

"I shall take your leave then." Harry said.

Hermione nodded. "Oh and Harry? Can you ask Ginny to come back once she's done?"

"Sure." Harry said as he reached the door. He almost stepped out but turned to face Hermione again. "Hermione? Malfoy is coming tonight isn't he?"

Hermione turned to look at Harry. "Yes. He is."

"Hmmm." Harry mused. "Wonder why he had to be all idiotic about it in the first place."

"Harry ..." Hermione chided him.

"Only pointing it out. Which male says no to go on a date with someone as gorgeous as you? Even if it is a boring charity Ball." Harry said.

"Harry ..." Hermione's eyes widened. "I just thought we could all go as friends. We've all been spending time together in the past few days inspite of the strangeness of it all. It's only obvious we can all go together to the Ball."

"Yes that's true." Harry agreed. "But you see Ginny and I are going together and so are Matt and Katherine. That leaves only you and Malfoy..."

"So? It's just how it is." Hermione said. "You and Ginny are married and Matt and Katherine are dating. By default it's Draco and me."

"Hmmm. You sure?" Harry asked narrowing his eyes.

"Sure of what? Of course I'm sure. Who else would you have suggested I go with? And he doesn't know anyone besides us here either." Hermione retorted.

"I'm just pointing it out." Harry said shrugging.

"Rather like stating the obvious." Hermione said.

Oh Hermione. It's so obvious to everyone but you two. Harry thought to himself as he chuckled inwardly.

"Hermione? On an entirely serious note, what do you think of Malfoy?" Harry asked.

Hermione avoided his eyes and turned to look at the mirror, removing a non-existent piece of lint from her dress.

"What do you mean what do I think of him? You know he's my friend. Always has been since the end of third year. You know the story." Hermione said.

"Yes I know the story Hermione. But that was then. I want to know what you think of him now." Harry pressed.

Hermione sighed. "I think of the same Harry. In fact my faith in him gets deeper and deeper every day. He didn't give up on me. I'm here today, attending this Ball with you and it's all because of him."

Harry pinched the bridge of his nose and his glasses rode up a little. He repositioned them and gazed directly towards Hermione. His green eyes piercing through her brown ones, trying to see something more than what she had just said.

"Hermione, we've always been able to talk to each other. Even when you couldn't talk to Ron or I couldn't with Ginny, we were always there for each other in ways no one else was. You're more than my best friend. You're my sister and I want you to know that you can talk to me about anything." Harry said with all his feelings.

Hermione's eyes glazed at this and she came over and hugged Harry. He patted her back and hugged her back.

"I know Harry. I know." She said quietly. "And I love you for It."

"I love you too Hermione. And I want you to be happy. I know that sometimes you feel you don't deserve to be happy and you may overlook things that make you happy and you'll go out of your way for others. But it's time you do things for yourself too. You need to start recognising what you need and what you want too." Harry said as he rubbed her back soothingly.

Hermione sniffed and Harry conjured some tissue and handed it to her.

"Harry what are you saying?" Hermione asked.

Harry took a deep breath and decided to chance it. He was never the one to beat around the bush when it came to Hermione.

"Hermione, are you in love with Malfoy?"

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**Okay then... **

**Harry brought out the big guns!**

**What will Hermione say to that now?**

**i'm sorry to leave it at that but i just wanted to give a glimpse of Harry Hermione relationship and also the next segment to this is gooing to be rather long.. i dont want to cut it up so i'll just put in the next chapter!**

**hope you liked it even though it was a filler of sorts!**

**thanks for reading!**

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**p.s. hey if you're reading this even after the story is complete, please do feel free to leave me a review.. i love to hear from my readers and it also helps me improve and write better!**

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	35. Chapter 35

**Thanking;**

**MaronTodai**  
><strong>Daisy Seary<strong>  
><strong>Myriam H<strong>  
><strong>bushyhaired-american-nerd<strong>  
><strong>SaruDM<strong>  
><strong>n3rdwagg<strong>  
><strong>cutiepiehp<strong>  
><strong>Smiley<strong>  
><strong>echizenochi<strong>  
><strong>mihika<strong>  
><strong>frostykitten<strong>  
><strong>brooke summers1610<strong>  
><strong>LyndahJune<strong>  
><strong>Hachiko06 and My Bad Addiction<strong>

**For all the lurvvvvee!**

**Here's the chapter you all are awaiting!**

**_Flashback Alert !_ :-)**

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**CHAPTER 35.**

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_The 4th year passed fairly quickly especially with the tournament._

_After the surprise Draco had given Hermione on Christmas Eve, things between them had become even better._

_Draco had finally accepted his feelings for Hermione and inspite of the insecurities that did arise in his mind because of it, he was altogether just too happy feeling the way he was feeling._

_Love was one of those feelings that Draco Malfoy hadn't ever been accustomed to. At least not openly._

_Sure, his mom loved him but that was only because she told him once in a few years. The Malfoy household was not a place to demonstrate love. But hate and unkindness were openly welcome there._

_Thus when Draco had finally come to terms with being in love with his best friend, he found himself incapable of fighting the good feeling._

_This reflected in his relationship with Hermione. Although she still thought they were only friends yet, that didn't stop him from being on cloud nine almost always._

_Hermione on the other hand, had, of course started noticing a happier and more cheerful Draco and he had also started opening up more. She was naturally thrilled at this change and thus her happiness multiplied too._

_They kept in touch all summer and couldn't wait to go back to school where they could meet each other every day albeit secretly._

_Umbridge's presence in school had been a major nuisance. Not only for everyone else but more so for Draco and Hermione._

_Draco was expected to suck up to her and had been instructed by his father to join the Inquisitorial Squad. He absolutely loathed the woman and also hated being a part of the squad._

_But his father's word was always the last word. He had had no choice but to join._

_This had made meeting Hermione even more difficult. In the past too they had had to be careful but with Umbridge's eyes everywhere and not to mention Filch's, things had gotten rather tedious._

_Also, Draco being a member of the squad and a supposed slytherin prat couldn't ever be seen with Hermione Granger._

_Now not only did they have to hide their friendship but Draco also had to hide from Umbridge his real intentions._

_But luckily because of all this, Draco had inside information and he could warn Hermione about the whereabouts of the squad so that the Dumbledore's Army could be safe most of the times._

_Hermione had also given him one of the coins that the DA used to contact each other, so that he knew their plans all the time and would make sure that the squad went nowhere close to them._

_Draco had often thought how it would be if he actually told Hermione about his feelings for her. He was still reeling from the effects of his newly developed feelings and he longed for her to feel the same way about him._

_Often he had come extremely close to telling her but something or the other had always happened and he had chickened out._

_Turned out that Draco Malfoy was actually nervous about expressing his love for his best friend._

_His main concern had been their friendship. He valued it more than anything else in the world. It had made him a different person and he had come to like the person he had become._

_He treasured Hermione greatly and would never want anything to jeopardise their friendship._

_Would revealing his feelings to her cause any harm to their friendship? Would Hermione start acting all weird and distant after he told her?_

_He knew she loved him immensely but she generally was a kind and compassionate soul. She had quite a few friends and she liked almost everyone._

_Even Ron and Harry were equally close to her. What if she had feelings for the Weasel? What if she felt only platonic love for him?_

_He was sure that she could eventually love him more than friends did, but he didn't want any sympathy love from her. He wanted her to feel deeply for him just like he did for her._

_He had hope that she could feel that way for him. He wasn't sure if she already did but he made a mental note to start observing her more to look for signs._

_He concluded that he couldn't risk their friendship over this and having Hermione in his life was more important to him. He'd rather have her as a friend than not have her in his life at all._

_And telling her that he loved her always had the risk of pushing her away and it was a risk he wasn't ready to take._

_So he kept his feelings on hold for the time being. Besides, this year at Hogwarts was officially the worst year ever and with so much going on he really wasn't in the frame of mind to own up to her or start a relationship if she felt the same._

_So they went on like before, their friendship strengthening inspite of all odds._

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_Hermione had begun to see Draco in a new light too after Christmas Eve last year._

_What he done for her was incredible? She had had the best time and she couldn't help but feel even more affectionate towards him._

_They had been close but she felt connected to him in a way they weren't before now._

_He was on her mind constantly, more than before and she found herself waiting for words to appear in her two way diary. And when they did, her face would light up with a smile for no reason whatsoever._

_5th year was turning out to be really difficult especially with Umbridge and the OWL's but they managed to sneak and meet even then. Their meetings were less than they had been and Hermione found herself very upset about it._

_She waited for moments they could be together and when they weren't, she often glanced around to catch a glimpse of him. Not seeing him around for long made her anxious and when she did see him, a wave of euphoria would wash over her._

_She enjoyed stealing covert glances his way and when he would smirk and wink at her when no one was looking, it would send her insides in frenzy._

_Her stomach rolled into tight knots whenever she caught him look at her in the same way she presumed she looked at him when he wasn't noticing._

_This was definitely different. Nothing like this had happened in the past before. And they had been sneaky since a long time. How was now any different? Hermione passed it off as the thrill of doing something that was forbidden or prohibited._

_Especially with Umbridge's umpteen rules, they were constantly breaking them and surely that would account for all the adrenaline rush she was experiencing lately._

_But the blushing and stammering when he suddenly would come up from behind and wrap her in a hug was unaccountable. She noticed that they had started exchanging more touches and often sat very close together whenever they had the chance._

_Innocent brushes hand around the shoulders, greeting and parting hugs that definitely lasted way longer than common hugs did, touching each others hair which was completely new, and hand holding! When had they started holding hands for no reason?_

_She didn't know how it had all started but it was too comforting and didn't feel awkward at all. In fact it felt like the most natural thing in the world._

_She loved the feeling of his long slender fingers in her hand. Her smaller hand in his larger one seemed to fit perfectly and she felt safe whenever she held it._

_She had to admit that she loved holding hands with him. And hugging him. And moving his hair from his face. And playing with his hair._

_Sigh! She couldn't rate it in order. She loved it all._

_She often thought about the change in dynamics and after a lot of thinking and over analysing she came to the conclusion that the excess affection and need for closeness was probably a reaction to the troubled times they lived in._

_Harry had seen Voldemort. And even though no one seemed to believe him, Hermione had complete faith in him. She truly believed that Voldemort had returned. Draco too had said that Lucius was often occupied a lot more than he normally was and he was perpetually in a mood worse than what he usually was in._

_Draco wasn't a fan of Harry Potter but knowing Hermione had led him to know about Harry in detail and he for once also didn't doubt Harry's word. He too was certain that Voldemort was back. And the Ministry butting its head into the school affairs was proof enough._

_Everyone was on tenterhooks. No one knew what was going to happen next and this uncertainty was what Hermione thought was responsible for the change in hers and Draco's friendship._

_There was a need to be closer and safe. And Hermione felt both with Draco around. Of course Harry and Ron were there too. But Hermione had felt so comfortable only with Draco._

_Yes! That was it. That was the reason why she constantly sought him and longed to touch him, to hold him and be held._

_But it still didn't explain the euphoric feelings and the blushing and the tingly feelings it all evoked._

_But Hermione didn't have the time to dwell on that. Something or the other kept on happening and she was always occupied with it._

_One incident totally changed her line of thought and she was forced to finally consider and admit to herself what she had been putting off for a long time._

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_The DA was having one of its meetings in the Room of requirement. Usually Draco would always lead the squad away from wherever these meetings were held. But one day, Umbridge called in a squad meeting suddenly without any information and she herself made sure she accompanied them when they went out to look for the DA._

_Draco got worried and hurriedly wrote on the coin to warn Hermione to get out and disperse as fast as they could. He then tried to stall Umbridge and being Lucius Malfoy's son and head of the squad, she followed him without questioning him._

_He managed to buy the DA almost 10 minutes before Umbridge got frustrated with Draco and the other Slytherins and started yelling at them._

_Just then, Crabbe saw one of the Creevey brothers sneaking out of a corridor._

_"Professor!" He yelled out pointi_ng _towards the corridor where a terrified Colin Creevey was openly running now._

_Umbridge turned sharply towards the boy and raised her wand. "Stupefy!" She yelled. Poor Colin was hit squarely by the curse and he staggered back ways, hitting his back and head on the stony corridor wall._

_Draco looked shocked at the sight of her actually cursing a student. Filch was smirking and the other members of the squad looked equally pleased._

_"Bring that imbecile here." Umbridge ordered. "He will have to answer all my questions."_

_Before anyone could even touch Colin, a sharp voice yelled "protego" and an invisible sheer screen was formed between Colin and Crabbe who had come to yank him away._

_Everyone looked surprised as they saw an enraged Hermione Granger clutching her wand, the protection charm flowing dangerously through her wand tip. Her eyes were livid and her face was hardened with rage._

_Draco gulped. He had never seen her so angry before. Not even when she had punched him in third year. And that was the angriest he had seen her._

_"How dare you?" Hermione yelled at Umbridge. "How dare you use a hex on a student? He's so young. He can barely defend himself. What sort of professor curses students?" She yelled, her hair standing out due to the friction and anger._

_"Oh oh oh. Well, what do have here?" Umbridge laughed forcibly through her teeth. "Is that Ms. Granger? Well, aside from questioning my motives, Ms. Granger, may I know what you are doing roaming around these corridors at this time?"_

_Hermione stiffened. "It's not curfew yet." She yet boldly. "Last time I checked it wasn't a crime to be walking around my own school."_

_"Tsk tsk. Ms. Granger, I suppose you ought to learn how to speak to your superiors. Pity that's not taught in a book. I hear you lap them up pretty well." She looked at her with a smirk._

_Draco was finding himself getting angrier by the minute. He couldn't stand the way the foul pink toad was talking to his Hermione. He was dreading the punishment that she was going to dish out. Everyone knew that Dolores Umbridge loved to punish for even the smallest things._

_Hermione noticed his look of rage and internal battle. She briefly looked at him and pleaded him to stay put._

_"Perhaps if my superiors knew how to conduct themselves in front of their students, I wouldn't have had to resort to this." Hermione retorted hotly. "He's just a 12 year old for Merlin's sake."_

_"Enough!" Umbridge yelled, losing her patience. She was trembling with anger. "This isn't over yet Ms. Granger. I will find out what the lot of you is up to and you will be punished for this. Do not for a moment think I shall forget. I am too angry to think straight right now but be assured that I shall think of an appropriate detention that will suit the kinds of you." She barked before turning on her pink behind and marching out with Filch and his cat on her toes._

_The rest of the slytherins smirked and cackled before leaving._

_Draco was waiting before everyone had left; he turned to look at Hermione with worried eyes._

_"Hermione ... "_

_"Sshh. Not here. Just go now. Please." She pleaded as she picked Colin up and tried to get him to talk._

_Draco gave her another beseeching look but she looked up at him and smiled warmly and mouthed the words 'go on. I'll see you soon.'_

_Her smile pushed all doubts from his mind and he smiled back mouthing 'take care' before leaving her._

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_Hermione looked at a still unconscious Colin in her lap, her eyes threatening to spill. "Colin? Please wake up." She whispered._

_When he didn't, she silently started crying and muttered "enervate" under her breath. Colin groggily opened his left eye and looked up at the ceiling._

_Hermione broke into a wet smile "Colin? How're you feeling?" She asked._

_"Huh?" He said rubbing his head and trying to sit up._

_Hermione helped him up. "Okay come on now, you seem all right, just a bit stunned. I'm sure it's fine but let's get you up to madam Pomfrey now. Can you walk?"_

_"I guess..." He mumbled._

_He faltered a bit so Hermione cast a feather light charm on him and guided him towards the infirmary, all the while abusing Umbridge in her mind._

_Meanwhile Draco had followed the rest of the squad into Umbridge's abominable pink office. His mind was furious with the way she had spoken to Hermione._

_He couldn't believe Hermione had been stupid enough to come in her way and taunt her. But then again that was Hermione for you. She was reckless when it came to others and obviously seeing young Colin so defenceless against the toad, she couldn't help but jump for his safety._

_Being a Slytherin, he would have found such behaviour extremely foolish but now that he knew her, he had grown to become quite fond of her courage and it was one of the things he loved about her. He didn't know if he himself could ever display such acts of courage but he was extremely proud of Hermione that she could._

_But walking into the pink office, his pride was replaced by dread._

_Umbridge was shaking with anger. As she settled into her chair with a loud thump, her cats were startled and they fled their portrait plates in a jiffy._

_"That girl!" She fumed. "She shall be punished. I shall give her detention that hasn't been given to any student yet. Writing into the skin will seem better in comparison."_

_The others smirked while Draco gulped. He tried to keep his outward appearance as unaffected as he could. But from inside he was squirming._

_"That filthy mudblood will pay for her insolence. In a way that they are supposed to be punished." She said smiling eerily as ideas formed into her head. "It's time that Hogwarts starts implementing the right kind of punishment to endorse discipline."_

_Draco's stomach had formed a tight knot now. He recognised the madness in her eyes. He had seen it often in his father's and his friend's eyes._

_"Maybe we could make a class out of it. As your defence teacher, it's my duty to teach you. And next class will be a live demonstration of the unforgivables. Maybe some crucio will reveal what she has been up to and will teach her to keep her toe in line." Umbridge said with an excited glint in her eyes._

_Draco struggled to stay upright and hide the look of horror from his face. His heart was thumping and he hoped no one would start noticing the beads of sweat forming on his forehead._

_He really needed to get out of there. There was only so much he could pretend. Umbridge was going to use the Cruciatus on Hermione! Merlin! He had to do something. He had to warn her!_

_"Mr. Malfoy!" Umbridge yelled for the third time._

_"Yeah.. Um.. Yes professor?" Draco said._

_"You look distracted. Is there some problem?" She asked._

_"No professor. Certainly not. Only imagining the look on Granger's face when she hears of her punishment." Draco managed to say._

_Umbridge laughed her annoyingly nauseating laugh at Draco's reply. "Good good. Since you seem to gain such enjoyment by this I shall let you be the one to give her the news. Tell her that she must report here in my office on Wednesday at 8 pm for her detention." She said. "And all of you can be here as well. You have done good work today. You deserve a show of what will happen."_

_Draco nodded and put up a superior look on his face as he tried to smirk. "Very well professor."_

_"You may leave now." She said as she dismissed them._

_Draco left as fast as he could. He was shaking. With anger and with fear. He really needed to be alone right now. He had to calm down. He wanted to meet Hermione and make sure she was fine but after hearing what Umbridge planned on doing with her, he needed some time to cool down._

_There was no way he could speak to her without letting the news out. He had to avoid her for a bit and he had to get her out of this punishment. There was no way Draco would allow her to be a specimen for the cruciatus curse._

_He ran up the stairs that led to the astronomy tower. He knew that the top of the tower would be deserted right now and he really needed to be alone to think things through._

_Draco paced up and down till he was breathless. He wanted to punch something. Preferably Umbridge's pink face. He began to grow tired after half an hour of relentless pacing and found that the exercise had cooled him a bit. _

_ He stared out at the expanse below, wondering how he could save Hermione from this. _

_ One thing was certain. Draco Malfoy would in no way let Hermione endure what that evil excuse for a human had in mind. He would just not tell Hermione. Yes. Then she wouldn't go. But how long would that work for? _

_ Somehow or the other she would make sure Hermione would pay. No. He needed to do something else. He had to keep this from Hermione. Because he knew her and he was sure she would rather face her punishment than run away from it. _

_ Courage be damned! Draco wouldn't let her be so stupid. He had to come up with something. Luckily he was the one appointed to break the news of the punishment to her. So no one else would dare to talk to her. At least this way it could be kept a secret from her till he figured out what to do about it. _

_ He had only tomorrow to think about it. The day after was Wednesday and he had to have some backup plan ready. The most difficult part of it all was that he was all alone in this. He couldn't tell Hermione and neither could he tell anyone else since it involved Hermione. And if he did tell anyone else that would mean their secret would be out. So all in all, he was completely alone. _

_ He sat there for 15 more minutes, scouring his head for all sort of ideas but none were good enough. Finally, frustrated, he retreated to his dormitory and grabbed his broom and made his way back to the tower. _

_ He took off from there and flew almost violently. Feeling the wind biting his face, he flew blindly for some time till he slowed down and flew some more. While he was on the broom at a very slow pace, he started thinking how Umbridge could be fooled. _

_ If only he could go back in time and somehow prevent Colin and Hermione from being seen it would all work out. But Draco knew from Hermione that time turners were extremely difficult to procure and even if he did manage to find someone who could give it to him, it would be too late. _

_ There was no way McGonagall would ever give him the one she had given Hermione. He could break into her quarters but that was almost impossible. Besides, no one knew where it could be kept. It could be with her or with Dumbledore for all one knew. And neither's offices could be broken into. There also wasn't enough time to go about speculating something like this. _

_ No. That wouldn't work. He needed something concrete. Something that wouldn't seem fishy. He wondered if he should go to McGonagall and tell her what was being planned. Surely she wouldn't allow a student to be put under an unforgivable. But that would be extremely dangerous. Umbridge would realise someone from the squad had snitched since only they had the details of Hermione's punishment. She wouldn't hesitate to use any unforgivable on them either and he was sure she had mentioned veritaserum sometime. If it came to that, Draco wouldn't be able to resist its power and there was a lot that Draco had hidden and lied about. Also, Umbridge might use legilimency on them. No. This was extremely dangerous. Hermione might be saved temporarily but it would cause exposure of their friendship and Umbridge would instantly report it to his father and there was no saying what he would do with that piece of news. _

_ He started panicking at his train of thought. Although going to McGonagall had seemed a good idea in the beginning, now weighing all the pros and cons had showed him more cons than anything and Hermione's life would be even more in danger than some torture curse. _

_ He wiped his brow which was glistening with perspiration now. He seemed to come at a dead end. There was no way Umbridge could be fooled. Hermione would have to be there. There was no way out. She had to go through this. And he would be there. He would have to watch her writhe in agony as that mental woman inflicted pain on her._

_He didn't think he could watch her while she was being would certainly break down._

_ Holy Salazar! Unless... He was so stupid! So blind! The answer had been in front him all the time but he had to go all roundabout before he could come up with it. Of course there was a way. It was tricky of course but still the least dangerous of all the plans he had thought of anyway. _

_ And it would all work out. Everything was falling in place. He had all the resources even. He had to do it. _

_ Excited that he had finally come up with a plan, he turned around and went back to the tower and dismounted off his broom. He returned to his dorm room and went to take a shower. _

_ The hot water calmed him and he was glad that he had finally come up with something. Everything be damned if he would ever let the love of his life endure even one crucio! _

_ He crawled into his bed and closed his eyes. Less than a second later he opened them abruptly. Merlin! The entire seriousness of his plan chose that moment to hit him hard. He swallowed fearfully, his plan hitting him with full force._

_ That Hermione Granger wouldn't be harmed on Wednesday that much was certain. _

_But that didn't mean Umbridge wouldn't be dishing out her punishment. Someone would be at the receiving end and that someone was Draco Malfoy. _

_Because he planned to drink Polyjuice Potion with Hermione's hair in it. _

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**Cliffhanger... i'm so terribly sorry..**

**originally i planned to add the rest of the flashback in here itself but my chapter count was going to something like 12000 words..**

**crazy i know! although i'm a fan of smaller quick chapters, i still thought one big chapter would be better in this case, but i got writing and the chapter just wouldn't get over!**

**so i'm splitting it up, i dont want to overwhelm you with a whopper of a chapter..**

**i'm almost done writing the second half of this flashback so getting the next chapter up shouldn't take long!**

**please don't hate me!**

**i'll put up 36 soon!**

**meanwhile, you can let me know how you liked or disliked this chapter!**

**i know it feels like i'm dragging it out but this flashback is important to establish their feelings and is a half crux of the entire story.**

**so please bear with me!**

**thanks for reading..**

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	36. Chapter 36

**Thanking ;**

**Daisy Seary  
>cutiepiehp<br>roni2010  
>LadySarahj<br>slsilver  
>DA-Julie<br>n3rdwagg  
>Hachiko06<br>clairerichardson711  
>mihika<br>Karate Chic  
>MaronTodai - who i want to thank for pointing out that dennis creevey would be the younger brother and not colin! thank you! i'm sorry for the error!<br>KraZiiePyrozHavemoreFun  
>Myriam H<br>SaruDM and echizenochi**

**For their reviews!**

**Omg this is the longest chapter i've ever written! I think i took forever to write it!**

**i was so very tempted to break this chapter too, but i just couldn't.**

**so please let me know if you prefer longer chapters or shorter ones!**

**you all are the readers's.. i'll do as you say!**

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**A/N : there is a little conversation between draco and hermione via the two way diary. so as to keep their dialogues separate, i am using the bold font for draco's words while hermione's remain in plain italics. Similar pattern shall be followed if i need to depict diary conversations again in the future.**

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**CHAPTER 36.**

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_Draco awoke the next morning to the hooting of a loud black owl that he recognised as a school owl._

_He rubbed his eyes and instantly held his hand out for the letter. Only Hermione used school owls to contact him. And that too only when he wouldn't reply on the two way diary._

_He gave a bertie bean to the owl that chewed it and happily flew off._

_"Hmmm." Draco thought. "Must have been worm flavour."_

_He opened the letter._

Draco!  
>Where are you?<br>Just look at your diary.  
>I got worried when you didn't reply.<br>Please write back.

_That was it. She hadn't signed it of course, in case the letter was intercepted._

_Draco promptly got up and got his diary. Sure enough, there were frantic messages from Hermione._

_She had thought that he would want to meet up after what happened. But when he hadn't replied she had gotten worried. Worried enough to almost march into a Slytherin and ask for him._

_But she held back. If he didn't show up for breakfast, she would surely do that._

_Draco hurriedly found a quill and wrote back._

**_Hermione !_**

_There you are. Where have you been? I was worried sick you stupid prat._

**_I'm sorry. I should have checked the diary sooner._**

_All night I tried writing you._

**_I'm sorry. I just needed to clear my head. I went flying for a long time._**

_Yeah that's all right but ... I don't know.. I mean I'm not trying to be unreasonable, it's just..._

**_It's ok Hermione. You're not being unreasonable at all. I wanted to meet you right after the meeting but I was so angry. I just needed to cool off._**

_I understand but Draco it's okay. Nothing's happened._

**_Yet._**

_Yet. I know. She will come up with something soon I know but till then don't worry._

**_She called you a ... She said that word, Hermione. How can I be okay?_**

_Relax Draco. It's only a word to me now. It doesn't mean anything._

**_But..._**

_It's fine. Besides, shouldn't you be the one comforting me? One conceited fellow you are._

**_Oh please. Malfoy's don't comfort!_**

_Yeah right. They are only meant to be comforted._

**_I am not. Being comforted. I just was livid with Umbridge yesterday. As I said, I needed to cool off and I'm fine now. I'm sorry I worried you and I'm also sorry I wasn't there with you yesterday. That was utterly selfish of me._**

_Don't worry Draco. Harry and Ron and Ginny were there. And almost the entire DA. I wasn't alone._

**_But still. I wasn't there._**

_I know. But hey, you can make it up to me._

**_Anything._**

_Meet me behind Hagrid's hut after the last class._

**_What? Are you insane? That's practically at the forest's border._**

_Chicken, Malfoy?_

**_You wish._**

_Then you'll meet me?_

**_Ugggghhh. Why must choose such dangerous places?_**

_Because they're deserted you idiot. Don't want anyone walking in on us do we?_

**_Ooohhh Granger. That was hot! But please know, I'm a decent bloke. I do not go to deserted places with random girls, however much they want me._**

_Oh get over yourself Malfoy. I'm going to ignore that and go now. I need to shower._

**_You are on a roll woman! First the forest and now a shower! Are you trying to kill me?_**

_Hermione's reply wasn't as fast or spontaneous as her other replies had been which made Draco think about how she was reacting to his statement. Had he gone overboard with the flirting? He hoped not. He didn't want to make things awkward between them. He face palmed himself and groaned at his stupidity. But he just couldn't control himself. She had started it. And even though her statements had been perfectly innocent, Draco being a member of the male species had to go and add all his double entendres._

_He lifted his quill to hastily write an apology when he noticed that she had written back._

_No I wasn't. But I think I will now. Unfortunately I can't do it through this book but I will when I see you._

_Draco chuckled. So typical. He could even imagine her face and the expressions as she furiously wrote this. He was lucky he wasn't face to face with her._

**_Fine. If it's a death by you then I'm sure it'll be a sweet one. I'll die happy._**

_Eeew. Merlin! He was getting sappy. This was ridiculous. One moment he's retorting wittily and the other he's a complete mush._

_See Draco, he said to himself. Love has destroyed you._

_Oh come on Draco! How does one beat that? Just man up and fight evenly. Sap doesn't suit you._

**_Hahaha. I thought so too._**

_So now I really have to run for the shower. Don't want Lavender to get in before me. Merlin knows she takes ages to bathe._

**_I'll see you._**

_After class. Don't forget._

**_I won't._**

_Bye._

**_Bye._**

_Draco let out a huge breath of air that had been caught in his throat. Phew. That was close. He really needed to reign in his emotions. Of course Hermione took it all as a joke, but he didn't want to get carried away._

_Promising to himself that he wouldn't repeat any such flirting, he too went for a shower._

_Hermione, meanwhile shut her book and hastily hid it where she usually did._

_She was glad that it was a diary conversation and not a face to face one because she was pretty sure that nothing would have been able to hide the pink blush that had crept up her neck and face judging by how warm it had become._

_She didn't know why she was reacting this way. It was only stupid, harmless flirting on Draco's part which usually she would have fought in her usual Hermione Granger manner._

_But today she found herself enjoying it and yearning for more from him. Especially when he said the dying a happy man line, she almost swooned internally._

_What was wrong with her? What had started happening to her around Draco these days? This was so new. They had been hanging out for a long time now, but these feelings had only started in the last few months._

_Wait a minute. Feelings?_

_What feelings?_

_Friendly feelings._

_But they were always there, she argued with herself. Besides, Ron and Harry never evoked such feelings. And Draco and Ron and Harry were her best friends. All in the same league. Right?_

_Right?_

_Hermione took a bit long to think of an answer for that._

_Lately she had been thinking about Draco way more than her other two guy friends. And his presence brought happiness in amounts too intense for normality. Also,she had not meant to sound like some worried, nagging girlfriend when she had told Draco off for not replying to her all night. She hoped she didn't come across as one._

_She had analysed it before and kept her thoughts and feelings on the back burner but this was happening to often to ignore now._

_What was it that made her feelings for Draco Malfoy so special? Why was he so much more special?_

_There! She had admitted it that he was more special. She was really loathe to admit that since she had felt guilty about putting Draco on a pedestal higher than Harry and Ron. They had been her friend's way before Draco had. Also they hadn't made her life hell for the first 3 years at Hogwarts. How was it possible that she thought more about the person who had once been her enemy and said and done such hurtful things?_

_Sure he was her friend now but how did he become more than that?_

_How much more Hermione? She asked herself hesitantly, scared of her own answers._

_She groaned in frustration. She mentally knew what she was looking at. She was a logical girl and she came to conclusions swiftly. Although there was nothing logical about this situation of hers, she still knew what it meant._

_But was she ready to acknowledge it yet? There were so many things wrong with the whole thing. So many reasons why this shouldn't be happening._

_Her head was splitting at the end of this internal battle. She decided to just leave it at that and go for her long overdue shower._

_Damn! That Lavender had already usurped the bathroom! Damn her over analysing. She groaned and decided she better catch a few winks since she had to wait. Anyway she had barely slept the night before._

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_Draco was ready for breakfast on time thanks to Hermione's owl. He still had 15 minutes before the great hall served the first meal of the day and he decided that if he had to put his plan in motion he had to start now since his evening would be occupied by Hermione._

_He didn't want to blow her off and make her even more suspicious. She was not supposed to learn about her supposed detention at all. So he had to act all normal around her._

_Luckily for him, he loved Potions and he always kept stock of the potions they made in class. In fact he and Hermione often had fun competitions on their own._

_When he had learned that Hermione had made Polyjuice potion all on her own in the second year, his competitive side had won and he strived to make the perfect polyjuice. Of course it took him two tries, but the second batch was perfect. Draco had tried it out in Hermione's presence and he had turned into a complete carbon copy of Snape._

_Needless to say, the addition of Snape's greasy hair to the potion had raised the inedibility quotient of it to infinity but Hermione couldn't stop laughing as Draco paraded around foolishly looking like their brooding Professor._

_Since then they had been challenging each other with new potions. Luckily Draco had saved the remainder of Polyjuice and he at least had stock worth 13 hours of impersonation._

_Not that he'd need so much but it was reassuring to know that he had enough. Now all he had to do was procure Hermione's hair, which would be easy since he always made fun of it by messing it up. He would find a way to get one strand at least._

_Next he had to make sure that Hermione was occupied on Wednesday evening. Infact, he had to make sure that she wouldn't leave the Gryffindor common room or her dormitory at all._

_Since no one knew that they were friends, this would be tricky. Even if one person knew, he would ask them to make sure she didn't leave her dorm. But now that he was alone, he had to somehow trick her._

_Maybe he could put some sleeping drought in her drink at that time that would make sure she slept through the night. That way she would be completely out of the way._

_Good! It was all panning out well._

_He looked through his trunk and found his stash of polyjuice. He poured some into an ampoule, enough to last 3 hours. He didn't think Umbridge would keep her for longer than an hour but it was better to be safe than sorry._

_Glad that he had a plan, he now made his way towards the great hall trying to ignore the ball of metal that was weighing his stomach down with fear and dread._

_As he made his way towards the Slytherin table, he passed Umbridge who stopped him with her fake smile._

_"Well good morning Mr. Malfoy. How are you this fine morning?" She asked in her gratingly sweet voice._

_"I'm fine thank you, professor." Draco said carefully._

_"Good. And you're going to be better tomorrow. A live demonstration for you to learn from. I'm sure you're father will be pleased to hear this." She said smiling sickeningly sweetly._

_Draco gulped but smirked outwardly. "That's right professor."_

_"Good. I shall see you tomorrow then." She squeaked as she headed to the teacher's podium._

_Bugger it all! _

_Draco stood right in the middle of the aisle between his table and the teacher's table, desperately trying to piece things together._

_"Draco, mate? What's wrong? Don't you want to eat?" Blaise Zabini asked him from his seat._

_Draco looked at Blaise dazedly "huh?" He said. "Yeah. Coming." He said as he took a seat next to his best mate Blaise._

_"Are you okay mate?" Blaise asked showing unusual concern for a slytherin. "You were barely around after lunch yesterday."_

_"Umm yeah. I had squad duty and then I went flying." Draco said trying to think straight._

_"Okay." Blaise replied chewing his eggs and abandoning the topic since he figured that Draco clearly wasn't in the mood for conservation._

_Draco lost whatever little appetite he had had when he walked into the great hall._

_Umbridge expected him to be there while she tortured Hermione! He was so stupid! Of course she would think he would be there. He was the head of the squad, he should have thought of this earlier. How could he forget this important link?_

_But the question was that how the hell was he supposed to be there when he was impersonating Hermione?_

_This was getting harder by the minute. How was he going to be at the same place as two people? There wasn't any way he could ignore Umbridge's indirect order without making her suspicious._

_He had to think of something else._

_"Draco? Draco?"_

_He heard his name being called out and turned to find that Blaise was looking at him._

_"Sorry mate. Didn't sleep well." Draco faked._

_"You better make a move on. We don't want to be late for the first class." Blaise said as he indicated towards the now half empty hall._

_"You're right. Thanks." Draco said as he got up to leave._

_Blaise Zabini was his only real friend in Slytherin. They had been friends since the first year. His family had shifted to England when he had joined Hogwarts and so they weren't much into the usual Pureblood mania that the other slytherins endorsed._

_Even though Draco and Blaise were brought up with different ideologies, they hit it off on an intellectual level and bonded over Quidditch. Of course they had their debates over pureblood vs. not so purebloods but it wasn't a cause for concern._

_Draco would tell him how he was brought up while Blaise told him about the relaxed atmosphere he grew up in Italy. But when his mother married a pureblood wizard from England, they had to shift._

_Turned out that Blaise's stepfather was an old friend of Lucius Malfoy. Needless to say he was extremely pleased that Draco had befriended Blaise, although he didn't approve the relaxed attitude of his friend's new wife towards muggle borns._

_So even though Crabbe and Goyle remained Draco's minions and so called friends, in truth they were only following Draco around like some lost puppies but Blaise was genuinely his friend._

_They weren't extremely expressive of each other or anything but they provided silent companionship to each other. Draco suspected that his change in feelings towards Hermione in the third year when she had punched him was probably aided due to Blaise's opinion about muggle borns._

_Even though at that time he had disagreed with Blaise, he had respected his opinions. And when Hermione came along and broke his nose, things probably fell into perspective._

_Blaise would be really glad to know that Hermione is my friend now. Draco thought. He wished he could tell him about it but Hermione and he had promised that for the sake of each other's safety they wouldn't disclose this to even their closest friends._

_And although Draco never felt guilty hiding this from Blaise, he did wish that he could share it with him. Hermione, on the other hand felt hugely guilty for keeping this from Harry and Ron. But she knew it was for the best. Harry had enough troubles with Voldemort as it is and she didn't need to add more to his list._

_"Draco? You're not quite fine? Is something wrong?" Blaise asked him again. "Can I help?" He asked before Draco could reply._

_Draco looked at Blaise for a minute. He could help. Maybe. But it would mean involving him. But there was no other choice._

_"Blaise?" Draco turned to him and asked. "There umm.. Actually there is something I want to ask of you." _

_ "Sure mate. What is it?" Blaise replied. _

_ Draco was wondering how to best ask him what he wanted from his friend. "You see, I need you to do something for me. But only if you think it's okay for you. I don't want to force you or anything." _

_ "What is it Draco? You know if it's bothering you so much I will do anything to help out." Blaise said kindly. _

_ "I know. But it's kind of a secret. I mean I can only tell you what to do. But I can't give you any explanations. I'm sorry I know after you do that for me , I will owe you some answers but trust me, it's not in my hand. I can't tell you anything. So if you're okay with only doing as I say without asking any questions then I can tell you to help me." Draco said rambling away. _

_ Blaise looked at his usually cool and comfortable friend. This wasn't the first time he was behaving fishy. In the past too he had been acting funny and upon asking he had been extremely vague about it. Not that Blaise was curious to find out what was happening. He knew that if Draco thought it was important to let him know then he would tell him for sure. Besides, he had observed that Draco was a lot happier and a lighter person ever since he had started noticing these changes. He had stopped calling his classmates names and he also rarely insulted the Gryffindors. As long as his mate was doing well, Blaise was happy. _

_ "Look Draco, whatever it is its clearly troubling you. And if you feel the need to talk I'm always here. But if you don't, even then I'm here. So just get on with what I need to do. I promise I won't ask any questions however bizarre your request might be." Blaise answered. _

_ Draco grinned at his best friend. He was really glad that Blaise was the way he was. Sometimes Draco wondered how in the world he ever got sorted into Slytherin. He wasn't curious to a fault neither was he manipulative and selfish and conniving. _

_ "Thanks a lot mate. I'm really counting on you. Needless to say, this stays between us. No one can know." Draco said. _

_ Blaise nodded his head. _

_ "I want you to take some polyjuice and be me tomorrow evening." Draco said. _

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_ "How's the kid?" Draco asked as he leaned against a tree bark, looking at Hermione place a blanket on the forest floor and putting a picnic basket on it. _

_ She sighed and plonked herself cross legged on the blanket. _

_ "Colin's fine. In fact Madam Pomfrey just gave him some pepper up potion and told him to have a good night's sleep." Hermione replied. _

_ "That's good." Draco said. "You do realise what you did yesterday was totally reckless, don't you?" _

_ "I know Draco. But what was I supposed to do? Colin and I were escaping together. He's just a kid; he wasn't very good at hiding. I couldn't leave him like that." Hermione defended herself. _

_ "I know. I know. But what the hell is a kid doing in the DA anyway? Don't you have an age limit or something?" Draco queried. _

_ Hermione rolled her eyes. "That boy idolises Harry like no tomorrow. If Harry starts wearing a skirt, you'll be sure Colin will wear one too. There's no way we could keep him out. Besides, he's a fast learner. If Umbridge hadn't been hexing his back, I bet he could've protected himself." _

_ "Hmmm." Draco mused. _

_ "So what is she planning now?" Hermione asked tentatively, plucking the grass from its roots. _

_ "As in?" Draco asked. _

_ "Well, this is Umbridge we are talking about. After what I did and said yesterday there is no way she's going to leave it at that." Hermione reasoned correctly. "So what's she got in store for me?" _

_ Draco looked at her trying hard to meet her gaze. He usually was a good liar and he could be very convincing and if he wanted even Hermione wouldn't be able to make out that he was lying. But he never wanted to lie to her. But there was no way out now. He had to lie. _

_ "Surprisingly enough she said she's going to remember this incident but do nothing about it for now." Draco said trying to sound as normal as he could. "She's going to try and bait you all. She wants to catch Potter as well if she can."_

_Draco could see Hermione's eyes flash with anger. "That toad!" she exclaimed. "In her dreams. There is no way i will let her get us."_

_"I know." Draco agreed. "That's why i'm not too worried." He said casually even though his stomach was tied in knots; and not the good kind of knots that he usually felt with Hermione around._

_The truth was that he was scared. Petrified actually. He had never really endured the Cruciatus curse before but his father had definitely threatened him with it. He didn't know if Lucius would ever act on his threat but he wasn't going to call on that bluff anytime soon. He had seen quite a few unfortunate people bear the brunt of his father's anger at wand point and he wasn't looking forward to it._

_But even though he was scared for himself and the pain that was going to be inflicted upon him, he was more scared to think about Hermione going through it. That's when he realised that, somehow he would bear it but he would never ever let her go thruogh it if he could help it._

_"We can't get too callous though." Hermione said, always the voice of reason and preparedness. "We have to keep our guard on all the time."_

_"Don't worry Granger." Draco said as he snuggled next to her on the blanket. "I'll keep an extra eye on that vile woman."_

_"Thanks Draco." Hermione said snuggling into him a bit more very consciously. _

_ She wondered if she shouldn't have closed in the distance. It felt so natural. And so nice. _

_ Well, he wasn't moving away was he? He seemed all fine and comfortable then why should she move? _

_ Her internal musings came to a stop as he leaned in right across her, very very close. She sucked in a deep breath and involuntarily closed her eyes. _

_ Nothing happened as he moved back and Hermione opened one eye slowly. He was munching on a muffin that he had just retrieved from the basket across from her. _

_ Hermione let out a huge gust of breath. _

_ What was that? She asked herself. _

_ What else had she expected? They had come here for a picnic; obviously Draco would be reaching out for food. Why had she thought otherwise? And what had she wanted to happen anyway? _

_ This was getting ridiculous, she chided herself. The more she thought about it and spent time with Draco, the more she felt antsy about it all. In truth, she knew what she was actually looking for but that one moment of realisation or admittance however relieving it would feel would only open up another can of worms and things could only get ugly from there on. _

_ She decided to do what a mature young adult in her place would have done. _  
><em> Ignore it all. <em>

_ She picked up a muffin too and they had a good, uninterrupted picnic unless Hagrid coming out to feed the thestrals could be counted. _

_ Luckily Hermione had placed enchantments all over their spot and Hagrid usually was quite oblivious to everything anyway so didn't have anything to be worried about. _

_ It was quite amusing for them to watch him feed beasts that they couldn't see. Draco was convinced that Hagrid had lost his marbles; to which Hermione swatted his arm playfully and chided him with a full blown explanation about the breeding and birth and mating and life and mythological history of thestrals and the reasons why they were invisible to people. _

_ Merlin! That witch knew everything. They didn't call her a know it all for nothing. _

_ "Blimey Hermione!" Draco groaned. "Why in the world you be reading up on thestrals?" _

_ "What?" She retaliated. "Of course it's important knowledge. It's the 3rd chapter in our NEWTS level potions." She claimed as if that statement alone explained her madness. _

_ "Hermione?" Draco asked her carefully as if she was mental and he was trying to be very patient with her. "What the bloody hell do thestrals even come in potions for? I can imagine if they were in care of magical creatures but even then, it's a 7th year subject. Why are you studying it in 5th year?" _

_ Hermione just rolled her eyes. "Don't you know me at all?" She asked bored. "And in chapter 3 they use thestral scales in the invisibility potion, so that's why I read a little on them." _

_ "A little?" Draco asked astounded. _

_ He chuckled. "You're quite the cute one anyway." He said out of the blue. _

_ Hermione blushed pink when he said that and the moment the words were out of his mouth, Draco stiffened and looked carefully at her, trying to gauge her reaction. _

_ He saw her blush and wondered why in the world Hermione Granger would be blushing. It's almost as if no one had called her cute before. _

_ He continued thinking in silence when he realised that probably none of her friends had called her cute before. Harry was usually so wound up with the evil around him and Ron was in competition with being oblivious with Hagrid. How was it that no one had noticed how cute she was? Especially when she had that intent concentrating look most times and when she was completely carefree, her face was totally smooth and smiley and she gave you complete attention whenever she was spoken too. _

_ Her eyes would go up in her head while she was listing her things to do or things to remember or when she was analysing something. Even then, she would be listening to you with one ear. She never forgot anything and often it showed in the little considerate things she did, like give random gifts with meaning behind it. _

_ How could she not be cute? She was freaking adorable in his opinion and he decided that he didn't care if he had said it. That's what he thought and he would make it a point to tell her that more often. _

_ "What?" Draco asked. "It's not bad being cute." _

_ Hermione laughed. "Of course not. It's just a funny word to hear from the mouth of the bad boy of Slytherin." _

_ "Hey!" Draco said indignantly. "I can use unused words and ... Fine... I am bad boy slytherin." He admitted it with a sigh. "But only because I've to keep up to the image my dear father has created for me." _

_ "That's true." She said keeping her head on his shoulder. "If they ever need to know the real Draco Malfoy, you send them right to me alright? I'll tell them what a softie you are." _

_ "Hey!" Draco almost yelled. "I am not a softie!" He insisted. _

_ Hermione laughed musically. "Oh you so are." _

_ "Am not." _

_ "Are." _

_ "Am so not." _

_ "I have proof!" _

_ "Damnit Hermione. You're too smart for your own good." Draco gave in. _

_ "That," she said as she gazed up at him lovingly "is the second thing you're right about today." _

_ "Yeah?" Draco quirked his eyebrow. "What was the first?" _

_ "You calling me cute of course." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. _

_ Draco just shook his head and laughed, savouring these moments. _

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**_ Hi! _**

_ Hello? It's almost dinner time. What are you doing writing here? _

**_ I have a proposal. _**

_ Yes...? _

**_ First accept it. _**

_ Draco, how can I accept something without even knowing what it is? _

**_ Come on, I'm not going to make you do something crazy like burn a library or something. _**

_ Draco! How can you even think things like that? _

**_ Hahah. So promise me. _**

_ Fine! But only because I'm hungry and want to head down to the great hall. _

_** Hah! That's where my proposition fits perfectly.** _

_ ?_

**_ I propose, we skip dinner and head on our own to the kitchens for a private dinner of our own! _**

_ What? That's ridiculous! _

**_ Firstly, you agreed and promised so it's non negotiable. And secondly, think about it; we both are hungry and all the elves will be busy with preparing for the great hall. We can have a secret dinner! _**

_ Hmmm _

**_ ?_**

_ When you put it that way... _

**_ Come on.. You know you want to..._**

_ Fine! _

**_ Great! So I'm heading to the kitchens now. You follow exactly 15 minutes later. _**

_ Okay. _

**.**

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_ Draco sighed in relief as he shut his diary. He needed to get the sleeping drought in Hermione's drink somehow and having dinner together was the only way he could think of. _

_ It was 6 o clock right now. Hopefully they would be done by 7 and Hermione would head to bed on account of sleepiness by 7.15, leaving Draco ample time to drink his potion along with Blaise. _

_ Everything worked to plan and by 7 itself, Hermione was yawning in between bites of her strawberry and almond crumble. _

_ "You look tired Hermione." Draco offered. _

_ "Yeah. I don't know why though. I still had a lot of studying to do." Hermione said worried. _

_ "Bollocks." Draco said. "You're already 2 years ahead. I think you can afford to sleep early one night." _

_ "Hmmm?" Hermione said, barely being able to register. "I think you're right." _

_ Draco stood up promptly. "Okay then. Let's get you to your dorm before you fall asleep then." _

_ "Thanks Draco. This was nice." Hermione said with a sleepy smile. _

_ Draco looked at her warmly, glad that he had had a nice evening with her before he would be tortured. The fact that he was doing this to save her from the pain gave him strength. _

_ "I know. We'll do it again. But you need to get going." Draco said. _

_ They said good bye and Draco followed him to the Gryffindor tower to make sure she got in. Luckily all the students were dining so no one saw them. _

_ He relieved a sigh of relief as he headed to his own dorm where Blaise was waiting for him. _

_ He handed him the ampoule with his own hair in it. _

_ "Mate, you need to have this at 7.50 and head to Umbridge's office. Just behave like I normally would. And it should last around 3 hours." Draco explained. _

_ Blaise nodded. "Draco I know I'm not supposed to ask you anything but if.. If you need any help after this .. I mean I don't know what you're going to do but if there's any danger I don't know who to call for help or where to look for you." _

_ Draco felt a sudden rush of brotherly emotions for his friend. He was sure Blaise must have formulated twenty different scenarios in his head about what Draco was actually planning on doing today. And obviously being the paranoid one that he usually was, 19 of them would have involved some serious injuries. _

_ Draco smiled. "Thanks a lot Blaise. But don't worry. It's nothing that serious. Nothing that a good night's sleep won't cure." _

_ Blaise seemed satisfied at the answer and Draco left with his own vial of potion with Hermione's hair. He headed to the prefects toilet where he would get privacy. Also coming out of there as Hermione wouldn't seem suspicious. _

_ At around 7.45 pm, he drank the potion. It wasn't as bad tasting as Hermione had made it out to be. Sure, it wasn't hot chocolate, but it wasn't unbearable. Maybe because it was her essence in it, it didn't taste too bad. Merlin! He was turning into a total sap. _

_ The unpleasant feeling of squishing and being squeezed and shrunk took over and in less than half a minute, the uneasiness left him and he stood there feeling slightly strange. _

_ Luckily he had used the potion once and he knew the feeling so he wasn't totally surprised. He looked at himself in the mirror. Although he had expected to see Hermione there, when he really did see himself look exactly like Hermione, he still was surprised. _

_ Wow. He thought. This is super weird. _  
><em> He glanced at his watch. 7.55 pm. <em>

_ Pushing aside everything, he hurried out towards Umbridge's office not wanting to be late in case she got cruel about punctuality too. _

_ "There you are Ms. Granger. Welcome to detention. I take it that Mr. Malfoy has told you the nature of this class tonight." Umbridge said as the rest of the squad snickered. _

_ Draco looked over at Blaise, who was doing a decent job of standing as the aloof and disinterested person that he showed himself to be. _

_ The only off thing he caught was the look of minor confusion in Blaise's eyes but that was only because he knew what he was thinking. Other than that, Blaise was doing a good job._

_"So Ms. Granger, will you tell me why you were with that little boy in the corridors when I came there?" Umbridge asked sickly sweetly. _

_ Draco swallowed a bit. He hadn't spoken yet but decided to wing it. Hell, there was no way out now anyway. _

_ "As I said earlier, I was just strolling around and I happened to see poor Colin." Draco said, trying to sound as calm as he could. _

_ "Oh I see." Umbridge said. "So you plan on going along with that story only then? Well well. Then we must make sure you speak no lies. But embossing it will not help will it? Your friend Mr. Potter wasn't much affected by it. So let's try something different shall we?" _

_ Draco could see the confusion growing in Blaise's eyes. But at that point he was bracing himself for what was going to befall upon him. He didn't worry about Blaise. He trusted him. _

_ "Last chance Ms. Granger. What are you up to?" Umbridge asked menacingly. _

_ Draco stood silent, looking almost insolent. He didn't want to do or say anything that would raise a doubt. _

_ "Don't say I didn't warn you mudblood." Umbridge spat out. "CRUCIO!" _

_ Draco's body crumbled instantly and he was prone in less than a second. He hugged himself tightly and tried to form coherent thoughts but everything left his mind as his body was being assaulted from thousand different angles all over. _

_ It was a pain that was unimaginable and inexplicable. His tissues were screaming for release. It seemed as if he wanted to burst out of his skin, it was so constricting. But his skin held tight, allowing hex after hex to burn and poke and prod simultaneously. He didn't know if his body would show any physical manifestation of this because at the moment he felt like he was being repeatedly stabbed again and again relentlessly. _

_ He forgot who he was. Who he was impersonating and what his motives were. All that he could remember was the pain. The agony. The howling and the red that he could see in front of his eyes. After a point he noticed that the stabbing had stopped. He was writhing and moving less and stationary by now. But his body wanted out and he couldn't even open his eyes. It was as if he had almost forgotten to breathe. When the colour started changing from red to black in front of his eyes and he started losing consciousness that was remaining, he jerked and remembered to breathe and the blacking out feeling started to disappear. _

_ Just as he was getting to acknowledge his position, he heard another faint Crucio resonate the room. He went rigid and the little progress he had made was all lost. Although this time it didn't feel as horrid as it did before, he felt himself losing consciousness much faster. _

_ He didn't hear or feel anything after that. He didn't hear Umbridge praise herself for maintaining discipline and treating mudbloods the way they were supposed to. He didn't hear the members of the squad whisper amongst themselves about how the great Hermione Granger had finally been shown her place. He didn't hear them all walk out. He also didn't hear Blaise coming gingerly to him and checking for any visible signs of torture or pain. He never felt Blaise check his limbs for obvious injuries and didn't see the shocked expression on Blaise's face when his eyes fell on the Malfoy ring that was currently on Hermione Granger's finger. _

_ The last thing he saw for a fraction of a second before he passed out completely was a totally horrified Blaise that was a splitting image of himself, looming over him, with no clue about what to do. _

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_Blaise was panicking like no tomorrow. He had no idea what to think much less do. Why was Hermione Granger wearing the Malfoy ring? He almost rolled his eyeballs for even thinking such a stupid question. He actually knew the truth right away but it seemed so absurd even in his head that he had to think of all possible scenarios. _

_ Draco never let that ring out of his sight. Ever since he was a teenager, his father had bestowed the family ring upon him and he wore it with pride. There was no way anyone could pry the ring off his fingers unless they were dead and cold. _

_ The tortured person in front of him wasn't Hermione Granger. It was Draco Malfoy. His best mate Draco. Blaise sat down, exhausted from all the revelations. His brow had broken in beads of sweat and he clamped his hands over his face, covering his eyes and hoping that when he did open them it would all vanish like a bad dream. But it didn't. He was still there, sitting as Draco and Draco was still sprawled on the floor limply as Hermione Granger. _

_ Of all the possible things he had thought that Draco may be doing today at this hour, this was certainly a far cry from it. Not even in his vaguest of dreams would Blaise ever imagine Draco Malfoy becoming Hermione Granger and serving her punishment. Why in the world would Draco commit such an act? A completely selfless and self harming act? That wasn't Draco Malfoy's style. At least it wasn't the Draco he knew. _

_ Blaise looked at his watch. It was only 8.45 pm. There was a long time till they changed back into their true selves. There was no way he could take Draco looking like Hermione to the Slytherin dungeons and there wasn't a chance he could leave him here. _

_ He didn't know if he could do this alone. But what choice did he have? Who could he trust? Draco had trusted him as last resort. It wasn't because he didn't trust him, Blaise was sure about that. It just must have been a sensitively guarded secret and since he had no out, he would have to use Blaise's help. Even now, Blaise had to be careful. He couldn't just ask anyone to help him. If Draco wanted to keep this a secret then it was important Blaise keep it too. _

_ He looked over at the body of Hermione Granger. And he thought deeply. If Draco had cared enough to save Hermione, it only meant that Hermione was important to him and vice versa. And the fact that Hermione herself wasn't here meant that Draco had prevented her from coming here. So they were close. And the only person he could think of who could help him was Granger. _

_ He had to contact her. Soon. But he had to move Draco out of Umbridge's office first. He cast a feather light and a disillusionment charm and took hold of Draco and walked towards the Room of Requirement. _

_ Draco was still unconscious when they reached the room. Blaise opened his mouth a bit and tipped his wand pouring some water in. Draco reflexively swallowed a bit but didn't open his eyes. Blaise put him on a bed the room had provided and fluffed up pillows to keep him comfortable. _

_ Thinking that he was safe for the moment, Blaise left to go to his dorm to send Hermione a letter. He didn't know what Draco would think once he knew that Blaise had summoned Hermione; but at this point he didn't really care. If Draco thought Hermione was important enough to save then she had the right to know what had happened. _

_ Blaise wrote a quick letter asking her to come to the Room as soon as she could. He didn't sign the letter. He was using Draco's owl. He thought that would be sign enough for her. He told the owl not to leave till either Hermione replied or left for the Room. _  
><em> And then he returned to the Room and waited. <em>

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**_._**

_Blaise woke up to the sound of the extremely heavy door opening. He looked at his watch. It was 5am. _

_ He instinctively dimmed the lights and raised his wand, ready to hex anyone who was unfriendly. _

_ He heard soft footsteps come across. "Draco?" A small, uncertain voice called out. _

_ Blaise's eyes adjusted to the dark and he recognised Hermione Granger. He lit up the room again and saw her startle. _  
><em> Her eyes scanned the room. They fell on Blaise first. She stood shocked, eyes wide and tightened her hand around her wand the moment their eyes met. <em>

_ "Ummm please. Don't be afraid." Blaise pleaded. _

_ Hermione relaxed just a bit. She knew how close Blaise and Draco were. But it was all very puzzling. She looked around, wondering what he was doing here. She saw the bed and a huddled body on it. She stood on her toes a bit and came a bit closer to the bed to see who it was. _

_ She gasped and dropped her wand and all but ran towards the bed. _

_ Frantically she pulled at his yet unconscious body, trying to wake him. Sobbing freely now, she tried everything to get him to wake up. _

_ "Draco? Draco? What's wrong?" She asked. There were no physical injuries but he looked paler than ever and almost lifeless. It didn't take an experienced Healer to say something was wrong. _

_ Her vision was completely blurred with the flow of tears. She didn't know what she was looking at. Only she could feel no response to her trying to get Draco to move. _

_ She turned hysterically towards Blaise. "You you were here?" She said between her weeping. "What's wrong with him? Why won't he get up?" _

_ "Um Granger ... Hermione .. I think you should calm down first..." _

_ "Calm down?" She all but shrieked. "My best friend looks like the life has been drained from him and you have the nerve to tell me to calm down?" She hollered her eyes bloodshot and hair all over, her clothes stained wet. _

_ Best friend? Draco and Granger were best friends? Now he had heard it all. _

_ She looked scary as hell but Blaise gripped his wand tighter and took a deep breath. "Look Hermione..." He said with difficulty. "I asked you to come to help. Not to create more problems. So if you can't help him you may as well go away." He said kindly but very firmly._

_Hermione sniffed a bit at hearing Blaise's words. She really wanted to help but how could she if she didn't know anything? Also the sight of Draco lying so lifeless out there, a thousand possibilities ran through her head, one worse than the other._

_She went up to his bed and sat next to him, holding his hand. "What happened?" She asked softly, still looking at the hand she held._

_._

_._

_._  
><em>Blaise had left after he explained to Hermione what exactly had happened. He didn't elaborate the torture part but the anguish and pain in Hermione's eyes told him that she knew.<em>

_All the while, she wept and wept, touching him all over, shaking him, willing him to wake up. His pulse was fast but feeble and he seemed to be breathing fine. Once, he had even grunted and even moved. The colour was slowly but surely coming back to his skin._

_They kept giving him small sips of water, which he unknowingly swallowed. After an hour, when it was evident that he was becoming better, Blaise suggested that he should leave._

_"I think his body just shut down for some uninterrupted rest." He said. "I think we should continue to give him water and check his vitals and let him wake up on his own."_

_Hermione nodded feebly._

_"I think I need to go back and take some more potion." He said hesitantly. "Umbridge will expect you to be absent today but not Draco. I think its best if you stay with him till he's better while I go about the day as Draco.I'll come here by noon to check on you both."_

_Hermione looked up at him impressed and thankful. "That's a good plan Blaise." She said softly. "Thank you. For everything." She added._

_He nodded and started moving towards the door. He turned back and Hermione raised her head to look at him. He wanted to say something badly but words didn't escape him. Hermione sensed it and just nodded her head in clear understanding. He then turned around and left._

_Now alone with Draco, Hermione's fresh wave of silent tears started again and she slid herself against Draco's slightly limp body and covered it in a full body to body hug._

_Holding him close to her such that there wasn't even space for an ant to venture through, she wept as she tried to imagine the horrors his body must have gone through only for her. She rubbed his arms and back, wondering if he could feel it or whether it was soothing. But she didn't care; she went on gently massaging him hoping that it would help relieve the stiffness when he woke up._

_She fell asleep herself after sometime, not leaving any air gap between their bodies, her hands clasped tightly against his; protectively placed across his heaving chest that showed sign of him breathing, his rhythmic breaths like a lullaby for her._

_._

_._

_._  
><em>Draco felt stiff. Very stiff. But he also felt something warm against his back. And his hands. He stretched his neck and groaned internally at the kink that straightened itself.<em>

_He looked down to find his hand intertwined within another delicate one, but almost holding it in a death grip. In fact, it felt like his entire body was being held together by the slighter and warmer body that was pressed flush against his back._

_He couldn't think clearly but he needed to sit up. He slowly prised his hand away from the one he was holding. The body against him grunted and moved. It sounded so familiar he thought. He looked down at the hand and memories of the very hand came to him. This was Hermione. He tried getting up but this time not without waking Hermione._

_Hermione realised that Draco was trying to move against her. She released the grip on his hand but didn't let go completely. She backed up so that a bit of space could be created between them enough for Draco to sit up._

_He sat up with some difficulty and he groaned. Hermione promptly sat up straight and looked at Draco._

_He looked livelier than he had yesterday. Although he had seen better days, Hermione couldn't be more relieved right now._

_Draco made a parched sound unknowingly and Hermione immediately retrieved her wand and motioned for Draco to open his mouth. She filled it with water and he drank thirstily._

_When he was done, he finally focussed on Hermione and understanding started dawning into his eyes. The moment she saw that he was better, she clung to him and started weeping again, mumbling incoherently in between about being an overachieving stupid pseudo Gryffindor. She mumbled many more things, most of which sounded angry but the effect was lost in her crying._

_When she was finally done, she pulled back and looked at him. "Why?" She asked._

_"What would you have done?" He asked back._

_"So stupid. So dangerous and irresponsible." She mumbled._

_"Hermione please." He croaked and looked at her, unable to say in words what he wanted to but his face, his eyes screaming words at her._

_All sense left her that very moment and she couldn't take his boring eyes anymore. Cupping both her palms gently on his cheeks, she raised her head to meet his lips with her own._

_His initial shock gave way to the action and she allowed him to tell her everything he wanted to but couldn't in the form of this kiss._

_There were no thoughts as both of them just spoke volumes through their lips moving silently against each other's, not hungrily or passionately but soothingly like therapy. Like he was healing from it all._

_There was no desire, no hunger nor passion or raging hormones amidst all of this Inspite of the feelings they both harboured for each other._

_Only 2 friends who unconditionally and so wholly loved each other that when words were lost to them, they found this the only way to get across what they felt._

_The only other way to describe it in one word would be : innocent._

_It was one of the most innocent and purest moments of their friendship._

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**okay! its finally done!**

**phew! flashback over!**

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	37. Chapter 37

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**CHAPTER 37.**

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"Harry ... I ..." Hermione started but stopped after thinking.

"No Hermione. It's either a yes or a no. I understand that most things aren't black or white and almost always a grey exists in many scenarios, but from where I'm standing right now, it's either a yes or a no." Harry stated emphatically.

Hermione sat down at the edge of her bed and ran her hands through her hair pensively.

Thank Merlin Ginny's not done my hair yet. Else she would have had my skin for messing it up so, she thought.

"Hermione?" Harry asked again.

She looked up at him with a thoughtful expression. Harry noticed that there was no denial nor was there any acceptance in her facial expression. There wasn't irritation at his suggestion either. Usually Hermione would have shown one of those feelings.

"It's okay Hermione. Do you love him?" Harry asked again.

"I never stopped loving him Harry." Hermione said in a low but firm voice.

Even though he had prepared himself to hear the affirmative, the tone and strength of Hermione's voice took him by surprise.

"You never..." Harry started.

"I always loved Draco, Harry. Since school. He was my first love. And that is kind of hard to forget or let go." Hermione said gently. She looked up at him and locked her eyes to his. "I've loved him since. And to answer your question truthfully, yes I still love him."

Harry nodded mutely, taking a seat next to Hermione. "So... You and Malfoy .."

Hermione shook her head. "No. There was nothing like 'me and Malfoy'." She explained. "I'm merely telling you I loved him. And I still do."

"But Ron?" Harry asked confused.

Hermione's eyes filled with pain that only a single name could produce. "I loved him too. You should know that. But that came much later."

Harry sat there as if in shock. He knew Hermione was in love with Malfoy now. But he could have never imagined that she always had been in love with him since the beginning. Imagining her loving anyone else but Ron during their school days was some shock. But then again, learning that she was best buddies with Draco Malfoy had been no less than a shock either. If one thought of it in that manner, it shouldn't have been so surprising.

"Harry?" Hermione said gently. "I truly loved Ron. I don't know how it's even possible to love two people at the same time but it was true. I wasn't cheating or being unfair to him. I never compromised on my feelings with him. You should know that." She pleaded.

"I'm not accusing you of that Mione. I've seen you with Ron. It's impossible to believe you could have loved two people at one time. You and Ron loved each other so much. I'm just... I'm just... I'm sorry Mione, that you had to go through such turmoil. I'm sure choosing wouldn't have been easy. But it's you. And you always do the right thing." Harry said kindly.

Hermione's face morphed into a relieved smile as she hugged Harry. Harry was her best friend and brother. She never needed to articulate much in front of him. He always knew how she felt and she felt understood with him around.

"Thanks Harry. You don't know how much that means to me. I didn't have any control over my feelings but that didn't stop me from feeling guilty every day. I felt guilty for being with Ron when I still loved Draco. And I felt guilty for loving Draco while I was with Ron. I was a mess. At one point I felt the only way I could right it all was by being with neither of them." Hermione said. "And then Ron proposed. And I thought I would naturally say no. But I couldn't. I just couldn't. And marrying him made me so happy. I still felt guilty but I tried pushing my extra feelings behind to start a new life with Ron. And when I couldn't be happier, Ron... Ron..."

Hermione had started choking up by now. Words that hadn't been said earlier but thought many times started spilling out. She was so relieved that she finally had someone to talk to about this. Keeping this in her for so long had been stifling.

"Sshh Hermione." Harry said as he hugged her tight and rubbed her back. "It's okay. It's okay to miss him. You're entitled to miss him. It wasn't your fault."

"I don't know Harry. He probably deserved someone whole. Someone who would have loved him fully and not shared the feelings. Someone who could have given him his baby in time... Maybe he wasn't happy..."

"Don't you for one moment think he could have been happier with anyone besides you Hermione." Harry admonished her lovingly. "You gave him all you could. It's not your fault he died before you both could have children."

"I'm not good enough for either of them Harry." Hermione said quietly. "I can't offer anything in entirety to them and they deserve much more than that."

"Malfoy loves you Hermione. A blind person would be able to see that. You deserve a second chance. This is fate giving you that chance Hermione." Harry stressed.

Hermione shook her head. "We lost our chance long back Harry. And I'm not bitter about it. I wasn't then and I'm not now. I'm not going to ruin Draco's life too by trying to become a part of it."

"Hermione don't be silly. That's the most preposterous thing I've ever heard come out of your mouth.. Please .." Harry said.

Hermione raised her hand signalling him to stop. "Please Harry, I know you love me and it's difficult for you to process what I'm saying about myself but I really don't want to discuss this." She said with an air of finality.

Harry looked defeated. He sighed and stood up. "Okay. I'll send Ginny in. You probably should get ready if we need to reach there in time."

Hermione nodded.

As Harry was leaving, he turned back. Leaning against the door, he looked at Hermione who had raised her head in his direction now.

"He's in love with you, you know. And he seems lost without you. You may not think it but at this point, you both are right for each other." Harry said and left before Hermione could gather her wits and say anything.

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"Shameful." Draco said shaking his head in mock consternation. "Ones own hospital charity ball and you're so late. Tsk tsk."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh give it a rest. Just because the invite say 7 pm onwards doesn't mean we should reach at dot 7."

"Some Healer." Draco murmured under his breath.

"Want to say something?" Hermione piped.

Draco shook his head, smirking.

"All this grand waste. I thought only wizards in England were pretentious about such balls and functions. Apparently it's everywhere." Hermione complained. "If they want to donate money, just do it! Why the show?"

"Oh Hermione." Ginny laughed. "Just enjoy the music and food. We can argue about the waste of resources later." She said as she eyed the champagne but distastefully picked the cherry iced tea.

"Hermione!" A loud excited voice called from the door.

Hermione turned to look in the direction and found Katherine, arm in arm with Matt, looking very excited. She quickly extricated herself from her boyfriend and made a beeline towards Hermione and Ginny, while Draco was introducing Matt to Harry.

"You look wonderful Katherine!" Hermione said truthfully.

"Thanks Hermione. But just look at you. This dress looks even more gorgeous on you today." Katherine gushed.

"Doesn't it?" Ginny spoke up as she picked some honeyed shrimp that was being passed. "And to think she almost didn't wear it. Thank Godric I sent Harry in time."

Katherine laughed. "Harry?"

"Don't tell him I told you. But Harry's quite the fashion expert." Ginny whispered.

"Ginny!" Harry said indignantly. "Not in public!"

"Oh hush." Ginny said. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"Let's dance. They are starting up the band." Katherine said enthusiastically.

Hermione started to make an excuse when Draco slid his arm into hers and whispered into her ear, "Shall we?"

Hermione looked at him irked, "do we really need to?"

"Humour me?" He asked uncharacteristically sweetly.

Hermione melted at the pleading look on his face. There were very rare occasions when Hermione could resist Draco, and this wasn't one of the moments. Especially after a recap of the most buried moments they had shared together in school, the equally buried memories had become fresh again and it was all Hermione could do to not envelope him and never let him go. But she had to keep herself in check. Just like she had all those years ago and so had he.

But one dance wouldn't be so bad, would it?

She smiled and put her hand in his offered one.

He gave her a dazzling smile that lit up his face and his eyes and Hermione couldn't help but replay Harry's parting words to her in her mind. Could it be true? Harry had very convincingly said that Draco loved her. But how could he be so sure when she herself wasn't sure. Things that had transpired years ago and were bygones were being refreshed again and it had started creating turmoil in her mind.

But seeing the look on Draco's face started pushing her worries away as she glided effortlessly thanks to Draco leading her perfectly. She felt totally comfortable being in such close proximity to him.

"At the risk of stating the obvious, I want to say something." Draco murmured into her ear as he twirled her.

Hermione raised her eyebrows at him questioningly.

"You look stunning." He said slowly, maintaining eye contact with her. "And it's not the outfit or anything. It's You." He said, still looking at her piercingly.

Hermione blushed furiously and lowered her gaze. She couldn't keep eye contact as the heat crept up her neck. She tried hard not smile despite herself.

"I can't decide if you looked more gorgeous the night of the Yule Ball or now." He continued.

Hermione closed in the slight distance so that she could rest her chin on his collar bone. If he was being so generous with compliments, then she didn't want him to see the pleased embarrassment on her face.

She laughed to hide her embarrassment. "Draco, that was almost a decade ago. Surely, I've grown a bit since then."

"Maybe." Draco said deep in thought. "But what does beauty have to do with age? You looked beyond beautiful that night. As do you now." He added.

Hermione cleared her throat. "Okay enough about all that now." She said trying to change the subject that made her uncomfortable. "So tell me," she asked grinning. "How's it going with Harry? I heard you had fun shopping for the tuxedo dress robes." She smirked.

Draco groaned and hung his head low on her shoulder. "Way to kill the mood." He murmured to himself.

"Sorry?" Hermione asked.

"Nothing nothing." Draco said patronisingly. "I really can't understand how that man became the saviour of the Wizarding World." He said shaking his head in denial.

"Draco!" Hermione chastised him.

"No seriously!" Draco protested. "He rejected 3 robes I selected for myself and picked my robe for me." He said exasperated.

Hermione laughed. "What are you complaining about? You look good. You should be thanking Harry."

"I look good?" Draco asked disbelievingly. "Just good? This," he said gesturing at his body, "isn't just good Granger! It's fantastic! Need I remind you about the time when I was voted best looking Quidditch player in Europe?"

Hermione laughed out loud. "And to think I almost forgot how modest you were too."

"I'm sorry about earlier." He said sheepishly.

"About..?" She asked looking confused.

"Being a git and refusing to come with you here." He said apologetically. "I mean, i don't know what came over me. All of fourth year i was dying to take you to the ball and now... Now when i had the chance, i just behaved like a complete prat."

Hermione laughed. "Don't be silly. You were a child back then." She joked. "Of course you wanted to take a pretty girl to the Ball with you."

Draco looked at her, shocked by what she had just said. "Who are you and what have you done to my Hermione?"

She blushed at the mention of 'my Hermione'. "I'm joking. I know it's boring to be here.I didn't want to either.. But Ginny really did."

"You're not joking." He said seriously. "You are pretty. Beautiful in fact. Pretty does no justice."

"Draco..." She said warningly.

"Ssshh. Just let it be. Accept my _true_ compliment graciously." He said.

She smiled to hide her clear embarrassment and rested her chin on his chest. "I'm glad you came though."

"Me too." He said softly.

The songs continued to play and they continued to dance. Without a break.

Hermione felt Harry tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw a knowing smirk on his face. She grimaced inwardly.

"If you're not opposed to me stealing your partner, Malfoy" Harry said "may I have one dance with my dear friend?"

Draco grudgingly handed Hermione to Harry.

"Oh don't look so gloomy Malfoy." Ginny said as she took Hermione's place. "I'm not a bad dance partner."

Draco smiled inspite of himself. He would never admit it to Hermione that he actually enjoyed the company of the Potter's. Even Harry. But Ginny was so entertaining that he couldn't help but actually have fun with her.

She behaved so casual with him as if they had always been friends. It was like she had never known the Draco Malfoy of Hogwarts and was completely starting fresh. Her ability to compartmentalise her relationships and to forgive and move on astounded him. He would have never thought that he would find a likely friend in a Weasley, let alone weaslette.

He smiled a genuine smile. "I can't believe Potter managed to keep his hands off you enough to dance with Hermione." He said as he turned her.

"Oh Harry and Hermione is something I don't want to even start with." Ginny said airily. "I may be his wife but Hermione holds a very special place in his heart. There's no separating them that way."

Draco nodded. "I know where you come from. I felt that often in school too. Surprisingly though, I was never jealous of it." He said before he could stop himself.

"Jealous huh?" Ginny said devilishly. "Now why in the world would you be jealous? She was best friends with you too. Enough to lie and sneak around."

"I mean. You know teenagers." Draco scoffed. "We all were possessive at that age."

"You've loved her since Hogwarts!" Ginny whistled. "Wow!"

Draco looked thoroughly embarrassed by now. "Ginny ... Please. Come on now. What's with the interrogation?"

"No I just..." Ginny said.

"Look. Forget what I said okay? It was a long time ago and I messed it up. I'm glad she's still my friend. I don't want to ruin anything now." Draco said earnestly.

Ginny looked at him with understanding. "Draco, nothing is messed up. She loves you too. I can feel it. Well, of course i became aware of your feelings for her first but now that i've met her, im certain she feels the same for you."

"You knew how I felt about her?" Draco asked incredulously. "Since when?"

"Ever since she fled and you offered to look for her." Ginny said confidently.

Draco's eyes grew slightly wide."Since then? Was it that obvious?"

"Well, maybe not to many, but I always catch these things." Ginny answered with a smirk. "So are you going to tell her or not?"

Draco sighed. "Its more complicated than you think Ginny."

"If you're worried about Ron then.."

Draco cut her off in the middle before she could say anything further. "Its not about him. Well, maybe in minuscule proportions, but not entirely. There are other things too."

Ginny took a deep breath. "Do you love her the same way you did in school?"

"More if its possible." He said without missing a beat.

"Then you'll find a way to make it work." Ginny said with full confidence.

"How can you be so sure?" He asked.

"I just am." She replied.

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	38. Chapter 38

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**CHAPTER 38.**

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Draco followed Hermione to the balcony that was adjacent to the ballroom. Dinner had been quite good and Hermione had claimed to have no room for dessert and had wandered off to the balcony for some exercise and fresh air.

"Here." Draco said balancing the sorbets in his hand. "I got you something light."

"Thanks Draco." Hermione said, accepting her sorbet. "You didn't have to."

"I wanted to." He shrugged as he leaned against the railing and surveyed the woman he was closest to yet so far away from him.

Minutes passed in companionable silence. It wasn't the heavy, hovering kind of silence. But a comfortable one between two people who had seen and been through a lot together and still had no need to fill everything between them with words.

After a few more moments Draco stretched and cracked his knuckles out of habit. Hermione winced at the sound. "Draco, you know that noise gives me the creeps! Besides, it's not really good to constantly subject your bones to such pressure to relieve your kinks."

"But it's relieving." He argued, pouting.

"Not necessarily good though." She argued back. "You need to keep your bones in good condition. For Quiddditch at least."

Draco chuckled throatily, amused at her Slytherin way of manipulating him into getting rid of his bad habit. "You'll make a fantastic mum someday Hermione." He said silently.

Hermione stiffened when she heard that. A couple of times, patients and nurses had said the same thing to her. But they were unrelated people. She had maintained stoic gratitude and thought nothing of it till she was alone. In the privacy of her cabin, she had broken down and cried. Cried for Ron, who had been prematurely deprived of his life; cried for herself and also for the unborn child that could have been, had she not been stubborn about her career.

After that, she would only periodically think of the future that she could have had but didn't. She hadn't thought about it until she had found the rattle and after that she hadn't thought about it until today when she had spoken to Harry.

Draco saying it in passing was probably the last straw. He didn't know about Hermione's guilt when it came to the topic of babies. She hadn't spoken about it to him. There wasn't any way he would have known that it was a sensitive topic for her but from her body language at the statement he made, he realised that saying it was a huge mistake.

He was berating himself and panicking at the same time in his head when Hermione breathed a deep strangled type of teary breath like she was trying to prevent a panic attack.

Draco took her hand in his and looked at her urgently. Her eyes had pooled up and were full of fat, saturated drops that were threatening to fall from the confines of her lids.

"Hermione?" He asked in a choked voice. "I'm sorry love. I didn't mean to.. I'm so terribly sorry.. It just was a ... I promise you it was supposed to be funny. Please love!" He babbled in panic.

Hermione barely registered what he was saying. She was trembling by now, her hands clutching the banister so tight that her knuckles were pale as marble. She wasn't crying, which in Draco's opinion, would have been better. He could somewhat handle a crying Hermione but this; he had no idea what to do. She was shaking and taking deep breaths and was stiff like she was having a seizure. She had an anguished look on her face and a few stray strangled sobs escaped her mouth.

"Hermione? Hermione? Please love! What's happening? Look at me!" He all but yelled, shaking her shoulders.

He was on full panic mode by now and was seriously considering going in and calling for help. The ballroom was full of Healers. Surely someone would know what was going on with her. He was wondering how to go in to fetch help without leaving Hermione unattended when he heard her make a loud sob and her rigid body collapsed.

Luckily his arms were around her already, so he was able to hold her before she fell. She went limp in his arms and broke down and started sobbing uncontrollably. She seemed to be out of her shocked, seizure like state and looked normal now.

As normal as an inconsolable, crying woman would be. Draco inwardly thanked Merlin for the change in her disposition. At least she wasn't unresponsive as she had been earlier and he wasn't as clueless as he had been either.

"Sshh. Hermione." Draco said in her ear, trying to be as calm as he could. "It's okay. It's okay. I have you. I'm really sorry. But please ..."

He held her close and she had his arms in an iron grip, holding him closer than he was holding her. He rubbed her back soothingly. It didn't look like she was ready to go back anytime soon inside and Draco thought it would be prudent to just take her home and try to get her to feel better.

He quickly sent Harry a patronus telling him that he and Hermione were going back home and not to worry and come back whenever they wished to.

Having done that, he held her closer and apparated them to his flat.

Hermione had slowed down by now and she was crying silently. Draco conjured a glass of water and handed it to her as he directed her towards the couch. She refused to even look at the glass. Draco tried tipping it to her lips and forcing some water into her mouth.

She barely had a sip and shook her head. She had stopped shaking but she was still crying. Draco was cursing himself. He had never ever before now upset her so much as she was now. Sure, he had hurt her and angered her in the past; even when they were friends, but never had she reacted in this way. Unknowingly, Draco had touched a nerve and a very sore one at that.

He couldn't even begin to explain how wretched he felt at the moment. He had prided himself at the fact that he was Hermione's comic relief. He always made her laugh and feel better. He wanted to be the one who could keep her happy always and never be the cause of her grief or let any sadness touch her. And now he had gone and done just that.

"Hermione please ..." Draco pleaded, with obvious pain stretched across his face. He didn't know what he could do to make her stop and feel better.

His chest was constricting at the sight of her breaking in front of him. He couldn't bear to see her thus. Every moment she spent sobbing, every tear that fell, was driving a dagger through his beaten heart.

She collapsed onto his chest, fisting his robes and hiding her face into his chest. He enveloped her protectively. Nothing he was saying was getting through to her. Maybe she needed to just cry it out and let it out of her system. It would probably be therapeutic. And he would be there for her.

They had made such progress in the past two months. He had succeeded in getting her out of her shell. She had laughed and joked around with him and had also re-connected with her family and friends. Things were going smoothly and now... This!

Clearly there were plenty of unresolved issues that Draco had not considered. The healing process wasn't as straightforward as he had imagined. He had thought it would be long but he hadn't anticipated a road block once he had started succeeding.

Whatever it was would surely come to an end. Hermione would eventually get tired of crying and however long it took, he would be there with her.

He hated himself for being the cause of her agony but thankfully she wasn't pushing him away.

They sat like this for an excruciatingly long time, Draco's front robes completely wet by now. She didn't relinquish her hold on him and when she did, she looked up into his eyes.

Draco couldn't figure out what he saw in them. There was a mixture of weakness, insecurity, a need... For what he didn't know. A need to be free of her demons or the need to accept, the need to leave everything behind and start over.. The need to be rid of many things.

It was one of the very few times when he couldn't decipher what she needed. What she wanted.

He looked at her apologetically and opened his mouth to say something but never got the chance to because that very moment she moved closer and raised her head to meet his lips. Her lips were never tentative, as Draco had imagined them to be in his various fantasies. There was a surety in the union that scared him.

His hands on her back froze and the shock he was feeling was showing by the fact that inspite of wanting this for years, he was unable to respond.

But Hermione never seemed to detect his uncertainty. Instead of moving away as she normally would, she pushed herself closer to him with an almost furious quality.

A normal Hermione would never do this, Draco thought as he laughed humourlessly in his head.

He was about to disengage himself from her because he was sure this wasn't what she wanted. Had she been lucid she would never do this.

Even though it was something he wanted since a long time, this wasn't the way he wanted it.

He knew when she would come to her senses; she would be mortified at what she had done. He didn't want to add this to the list of her worries.

With great difficulty, he decided to do the gentlemanly thing and tried separating herself from him. He had to use some force but finally he did manage to separate her from his lips.

She looked at him with hurt evident in her eyes. He didn't need to speculate that.

He saw vulnerability and rejection and confusion all at the same time on her face.

His heart broke at the look on her face.

If this was what doing the right thing did to her then screw it. He didn't care whether it was wrong. He didn't care that his conscience was screaming to him that he would regret it later. He knew that from an outside perspective it seemed like taking advantage of her. He could stop this before it escalated to proportions that couldn't be mended. He was in his senses, she wasn't. She couldn't be held responsible for her actions but that didn't mean he had the green signal for it. He had to be the mature one of the two.

He was torn. He knew she was in a delicate place now. And rejecting her would scar her more.

But letting it happen would leave new bruises that their friendship didn't require.

It was like choosing between the devil and the deep sea. Each had their consequences and nothing seemed to be the correct action.

He dared a look at her face again, and although his indecision had barely taken seconds, he felt like she had been looking like that at him for eternity.

One look at her and his mind blanked out as he leaned in and continued what she had started.

Luckily in her state, Hermione had barely registered the indecision on his part, and she fervently kissed him as if he had never pushed her away.

Draco's heart cried at the passion she was pouring out. While he had dreamed of this, he almost broke at the irony. She was hurt and weak and vulnerable and in such a state she was seeking him out. She would never want him in her lucid state. And even though his head was screaming at how wrong this was, his heart felt that it couldn't have been more right.

Years or wanting that had broken his heart was mending itself now and the current situation was crushing it. There was no escape.

Hermione entered his mouth ruthlessly to his shock, but the pleasure replaced any other feelings as she guided him to a reclining position on his couch and proceeded to straddle him.

Being the ladies' man that he was, he was always the first one to make a move and never shy of taking things forward. But now, he was petrified at Hermione's forwardness. Elated, but terrified.

She left his lips and moved on to the hollow behind his ears, causing him to grunt in appreciation. She left a very wet path from his ear to his neck and Draco tightened his hold into her hair, ridding her of the jewelled clip she was wearing. Her wavy curls covered her face but not before he could see the urgency and impatience on her face.

Before he knew it, his dress shirt was halfway open and she was continuing her way across his perfectly sculpted, hairless chest.

He couldn't hold it any longer. With a loud guttural moan, he flipped her and was atop her in seconds as he crashed his lips upon hers and she met him with renewed passion as she proceeded to completely get him out of his robes.

There were no thoughts going on in his mind as she struggled to free herself of the very dress that she didn't even feel like getting out of at the shop where she had purchased it. Draco helped her out of it, not once did his lips leave her skin while doing that and even if they had, Hermione would hear nothing of it. She kept every inch of herself glued to him as if she couldn't get close enough.

All the years of staying apart created a longing that they no longer had any hold over at the moment.

The only coherent words that Draco could manage repetitively before he was clouded over by unimaginable bliss was; "I love you Hermione. I Love you. So much."

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**Ummmm ... Yeah...**

**Bet you didn't expect that.**

**Thoughts?**

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	39. Chapter 39

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**CHAPTER 39.**

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_**Draco Malfoy's POV :**_

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I arranged the pillows under my elbow again so that I could continue looking at the woman I had fallen in love with almost a decade ago and never fallen out of love with.

She looked breathtaking. More than she ever had, if that was even possible. My chest tightened with the thought that this could never be my reality. I could spend hours every night looking at her instead of sleeping, just looking at her, the geography of her face, her body, her being with me. And all I had was tonight.

At some point, we had moved into my room and she had fallen asleep before me. Which wasn't surprising, given how exhausted she was, emotionally and otherwise.

I was too, but I was too high strung to actually fall asleep. I couldn't believe that Hermione Granger was sleeping next to me. Her body radiated warmth and a feeling of being home. Even though this was completely new for me, I had imagined waking up to her for years and somehow having her where she was right now, close beside me; seemed like the most natural thing in the whole world.

When we started out I was scared out of my wits. I wanted it so badly and didn't want it at the same time. If I hadn't looked into her eyes when I had tried to stop her, I'd be alone right now. And she would probably be at her flat,in her room, alone too. I will never know how that would have turned out. Stopping her at that time, even though it seemed responsible, could be misconstrued as rejection and I didn't want to push her more into the vulnerable abyss she had created. Either way, there would be consequences.

I can't get myself to regret what I've done. Although; when we wake tomorrow, I'm sure there will be a point when I will be wishing I could turn back time and do things differently. I'm certain of it. Not because I feel I've exploited the situation, not because she might feel I exploited her weakness, but because I know Hermione Granger, and I know how her mind works.

Even though she wasn't inebriated last night, she was in an emotionally vulnerable place. Her impulses then were not necessarily what she would normally act upon. And she did just that. The mental admonishment and guilt trip she will put herself through will be excruciating to watch. I'm certain she won't say anything to me nor will she want to discuss it or blame me but she will bear it all herself and it'll eventually eat her.

I sighed and ran my hands through my hair and pulled it till I felt my roots groan against my scalp. I sat up straight; it was pointless even trying to go to bed now. The duvet ran a little lower and exposed her bare shoulder as a result of me trying to sit up. Luckily it was warm and that didn't wake her up.

I looked over at her for possibly the thousandth time that night. Her makeup was gone before the night was over due to her crying and her hair was nothing like how it had been at the Ball.

That would be thanks to me. But if it were possible, her wild mane that fanned the pillow and just a little bit of her forehead, had never looked so good before. It was out of the confines of the delicate hairdo that Ginny had helped her with and was now all over, asserting itself proudly, just like Hermione Granger would do.

I decided I liked her hair this way better. It reminded me of the person she had been. I tentatively ran my fingers through her locks. They didn't let me run my hand smoothly of course, but nonetheless, I loved the feeling of her soft waves.

Hermione mumbled something incoherent in her sleep and her features relaxed as she attempted a lazy smile before turning her side, to face me now.

I froze mid action. I don't know why, but what I was doing made me feel guilty. Like I wasn't supposed to.

Which was ridiculous really. After the events of last night, I shouldn't be feeling guilty for running my hand through her hair. It was irrational, I know, but my heart picked up pace and waited for the inevitable to take place.

I expected her to wake up and the unpleasantness to begin right away. I knew it was coming. There was no denying that. I didn't want to pretend that this one incident would pave way for what I had dreamed of since years. So I was conditioning myself for the worse.

But luckily, she just mumbled some more, smiled a bit more and surprisingly, snuggled into my torso a little more before wrapping her now free hand over my waist and continuing her slumber.

I laughed nervously and exhaled the breath that I had subconsciously started holding when she had moved.

Feeling a little bolder, I linked my fingers with hers and relished the feeling of her hand in mine.

I closed my eyes and imagined myself with her, like this, every day of my remaining life. I would give anything for it to become a reality.

But right now, this moment was perfect and I was trying to hold it as close to me as I could, probably emboss the memory of it in my brain.

I opened my eyes and looked at her. Again.

She looked so much at ease, so free while she slept. I almost laughed out loud at the irony. Here I was, worrying my usually uncaring head about all that had happened while she slept peacefully as if it was the most natural incident in the world.

As long as it lasted.

Tomorrow would come and erase all the comforts of tonight. I couldn't say I was ready for it, because face it; it wasn't only Hermione's peace of mind at stake but also our friendship.

Over the years, our friendship had survived a lot; hate, prejudice,cowardice, familial opposition, lies and betrayal,lack of faith, but this was something that hadn't been tested.

And to be honest, I was practically out of my mind worrying about the impact this would have on our , what had not killed us in the past had only made us stronger, but what if this was the breaking point?

I continued to look at her. For some reason, the innocently content and carefree look on her face did nothing to abate my concerns.

On the contrary, I feared the contrasting feelings she would be going through when she would realise what had transpired.

Of course she was present when it all happened. She initiated it, she was aware, she was sober. But that didn't mean she wouldn't regret it. I know she will. And although I don't regret it one bit right now, the sad thing is, I know I will too when tomorrow comes. And not because the light of dawn puts things in a different perspective, but because it will put things in a different perspective for her. And it will pain her and she'll want to go through it all on her own. And that will pain me. That is why I will regret it.

Also, maybe a small part of me wants to believe that she acted the way she did out of love; like that would be wishful thinking.I would have wanted our first time to be romantic and mutual, but it was impulsive and in the moment. That would be the only other regret.

Sweet Salazar, i've turned sappy! I bet you're rolling in your grave, Lucius. But i cant help it. You tried plenty to drive her away from me but it only caused me to fall 're long gone, but i'm still no closer to having her than I was when you were alive.

But tonight, while it lasts, I'm going to soak every second of it, like my sleeping Hermione here.

I resumed my sleeping position and pulled her closer to me, memorizing every aspect of how her body felt against mine. Because that's what they would always be; a memory.

Right now, The morning can wait and so can the inevitable.

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	40. Chapter 40

**Thank you to;**

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**So Draco had only that much on his mind before he gave in and went to bed. But Hermione surely will have more to think about.**

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**CHAPTER 40.**

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**Hermione Granger's POV :**

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I smiled in my semi awake state as I relished the transition between sleepiness and wakefulness. Usually, my wand would ring an alarm at the time I had set the previous night and I would be up in a moment.

But I woke on my own today. Maybe the mild ray of sunlight that was sneaking its way in through the blinds could be held responsible, but I doubted it. I had always been an early riser, mostly due to inability to get or maintain sleep and I was always tired when I woke.

But today was different. All of last two months had been different but today as the wakefulness slowly started taking precedence over my sleepiness, I realised, for the first time in a long time, I didn't feel like getting out of bed.

I didn't particularly want to fall asleep again but I was content just snuggling into my pillow and covers and just being there. There was a very serene feeling about today that spread a very feel good warmth through my body right into my soul.

I felt so much in place. So comfortable. So warm. I wouldn't want to move an inch from where I was.

I sighed a happy sigh and tried opening my eyes. They were still fighting me, although I was almost up, well not awake enough to jumpstart the day but enough to not to go back to sleep.

I hadn't felt so alive in many days and for some reason even though my brain was telling me to stop lazing around and start the day with fruitful activities; I couldn't help but just revel in the moment.

The feeling of completeness, the warmth and security, was new but welcome nonetheless. I stretched my neck and consequently my arms. Or at least I tried to. I was restricted by something heavy over me. Something that held me snug in place.

Come to think of it, my bed had both sides open. It was not against a wall. Then why was my back pressed against a solid object like a wall?

Confused, I willed my eyes to open a bit more and my head to start clearing so I could think properly. Although I was immensely enjoying my current position and the non pragmatic part of my brain kept telling me to quit it and just snuggle back into my newfound comfort, the usual voice of reason that resided in me won over and I tried getting a hang of what was around me.

Before I could even sit up, my mind had cleared of the morning haze considerably and maybe because I was trying so hard, a plethora of memories came gushing into my consciousness.

I remembered being upset before the Ball, but Harry and Ginny tried cheering me up. The gown actually did wonders to my self esteem and I even enjoyed dancing with Draco.

Draco ... Merlin ! Draco !

I had sobbed all night and ...

Was it a dream? It could be. It had to be.

What with Draco Malfoy constantly being in my thoughts lately, especially his hair and smile and the unnaturally warm grey eyes that wrinkled when he smiled. I still wasn't used to his smiling face. I couldn't believe how much I had missed it and how much I was drawn to it.

Granted, I had been thinking about him a lot. But did my thoughts creep into my subconscious and make their way into my dreams?

I could feel the warmth of blood creeping along my neck on my face. I didn't need a mirror to confirm how red I must have gone. My thoughts were proof enough. I had never had such vivid dreams about Draco before. I may have thought up such scenarios and wished for them to happen. But never had I dreamed about it.

Then why now?

Enough. I think I needed to open the curtains. Maybe some light and some coffee was what I needed to start making sense of this all.

I tried to sit up. Again. But in vain. Now that I was more aware, I started panicking about an arm shaped object right across my waist, draped against my hip. I could hear my heart pounding dangerously into my ears and I felt like I was being hauled up high above the ground and my ears got blocked to all the extraneous sounds around me and I was only able to make out my highly augmented palpitations by now.

In slow motion, I braved my fears and turned my head to find the owner of the arm like object. There was a bundled up mass right next to me which appeared to be covered by the duvet too.

Not really wanting to, I shifted a bit higher and got my arms out of the duvet so I could remove it completely. I glimpsed a shock of pale blond hair peeking through the covers and I froze.

No...

No! Godric no...

It couldn't be.

It was a dream.

I kept staring at the head. Suddenly I was overpowered by curiosity. I lifted the duvet slightly off my chest and I gasped.

I wasn't wearing anything. That did nothing to quell my increasing fear. Pushing myself a bit more, I raised the duvet, to reveal a lean body sleeping on its stomach, its face buried into a pillow.

I dropped the comforter like it was a hot brick. My chest was heaving inwardly by now and the pressure in my ears was threatening to burst.

Before I could think more, the body groaned and made a sleepy noise. Even though I had a large inkling as to who it could be, I still looked over, trying to discern the face. I didn't have to wait long. He turned over and lazily flipped himself on his side and bringing me closer to himself with his draped arm around me by that action.

My pounding heart stopped beating immediately. Even though I knew, seeing Draco in the same bed as me, entwined in the same sheets as me, unclothed; just like me, was enough to stop my beating heart.

I silently gasped and the breath left my lungs.

The dream wasn't a dream anymore. Fresh visuals invaded my senses. I closed my eyes and cringed as I remembered the look on his shocked face when I had kissed him. I remembered him hesitating when I wanted to further things. Was it that unpalatable, the idea of us together; that he wanted to stop right there?

I mean I know he loved me in school. But that was a long time ago. And the chapter closed before it could be even read. He had been the one to close it. Maybe he had realised that it was better to be friends. And it was true. I don't blame him. It was better to be friends.

I know for a fact that he loves me dearly. He would do anything for me. Literally anything. And these two months were a testament to it. But I also knew that our love was limited to a platonic level. He held me in high esteem and loved me as much as platonic love could hold true.

That's it. Nothing more. I don't know why he didn't stop me last night. It looked like he objected to it. I was in my senses, well for all intents and purposes, I was vulnerable; but I was sober. He could have tried talking sense into me. I would have understood. I would have stopped.

But did I want to? The redundant voice of reason asked me quietly.

I didn't know what to answer. I always did what I wanted to. Not what was expected of me. More often than not my decisions were a result of logic and futuristic practicality and seldom wrong.

The fact that I had decided to go ahead last night astounded me.

No, Draco was not to be blamed here. He was after all, a man. His hesitancy in the beginning may have been a chance to sustain our friendship. He would have known that things would change after this. They always did.

Who was I hiding from? Although I knew what I did was brash and impulsive and it could potentially ruin the friendship we had managed to keep intact all these years; I knew deep down that I wanted to do it. It was probably the only way I could manifest my latent feelings for him. I didn't know anything better.

I was upset, weak and vulnerable. And yes that made me needy, ache for human touch and consolation. But I knew what was happening all the time. I was hurting and the only person who could save me from myself was Draco.

What I did was not a spontaneous act with regard to Draco. Because it was Draco, I went ahead. I felt comfortable unravelling my deepest desires and insecurities, knowing well that he would take care of me like no one else ever could.

I don't regret what happened. It wasn't how I had imagined as a love-sick teenager, but it was real and Draco stood by me. Like he always did.

No. I didn't regret it. But I felt guilty. Very guilty. Guilty for sleeping with the same person I was in love with whEN I was married to my husband. Guilty for finding solace in the embrace of the same person I was in love with while I was mourning the end of life of my husband. Guilty for being so twisted mentally that I loved two people so much at the same time that it was tearing me apart.

I had never been whole. Never since I realised I loved both of them. And my biggest mistake was to involve them in my madness. Had I left them both long ago, they would have been happier. They both deserved someone whole. Someone who didn't have a wall running through their heart, dividing it in two.

How could I be with either without betraying the other? Even in his death I had betrayed Ron. And I had been so unfair to Draco. Allowing myself to be comforted by him, giving myself to him in a way a woman did for the man she loved and who loved him back. I had been so selfish. So thoughtless.

Yes, I still loved Draco. And because I loved him I didn't regret what occurred between us. But I did regret the way it happened. And I felt like I used him. It made me hate myself.

I looked over at Draco's sleeping form again. The blanket was perched on his hips, very low and I could make out the contour of his extremely shapely hip. His torso was chiselled just enough to look human and not unnatural. I blushed when I remembered how similarly appreciative I was of his form last night.

Half his face was buried in the pillow and the other half had linen lines over it. Smiling, I gently caressed his cheek with my fingers, trying to smooth the lines without waking him.

He didn't wake but he sighed happily with a slight smile and his hold on me tightened just a bit. I froze. And waited with bated breath.

Luckily, that was it. He continued to sleep. He looked so happy and peaceful that if for a moment I forgot all the disturbing history around us, it would seem like an idyllic setting where a man and woman who loved each other greatly were greeting a beautiful morning among the many mornings of blissful togetherness.

I sighed. My insides ached with longing for the scene that displayed in front of me. But I knew it was wrong to hope for that. It was selfish of me to even think that. Draco didn't deserve the emptiness that was Hermione Granger Weasley. He was a loving, funny, caring and devoted person who should have an equally devoted woman in his life. He deserved to be happy and for someone to love him wholly with all her soul.

And that was where I fell short. Even though he was everything I needed, I was not what he deserved. I wiped my slow tears and dried my eyes.

I loved him. I always had. And even though he had possibly loved me at some time, it was time to move on. I wish I could have detached myself from him when I had seen him for the first time in Australia. But there was something that held me back. Something that said I had unfinished business to resolve. I don't know if last night was the business or not but I did know that his entry into my life 2 months ago, changed the direction of my life for the better.

My existence had come to a standstill and I had nowhere to go from here. And as always, Draco had come for me. He was the reason for so many things in my life going right. And I loved him. And because I loved him, I had to do what was right. It was time to stop being selfish and start thinking about him.

I gently placed my feet on the ground and tried to move his arm from me. It was dead weight, but I succeeded in freeing myself. Looking at my watch I saw it was only 7 am. No wonder Draco was still fast asleep. It was better this way. My task would be easy if I didn't have to confront him.

I got dressed quickly and stole a last look at the form of the man I loved. I couldn't resist, I went over and softly kissed him one last time. Moving away from him physically pained me at this point but I had to. I only wished that he would somehow know that I didn't regret last night and if I had a chance I would do it all over again, hoping somewhere that his actions were influenced by love like mine were.

I wasn't proud of how last night happened and I felt ashamed that I forced him into this. I was done guilting him through life and if I truly loved him, I would do what was needed to be done, however difficult it may be.

Memorising his form for one last time before leaving, I closed my eyes tightly to prevent the tears as I apparated away.

**.**

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**General POV :**

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Harry was arguing with Ginny as usual over breakfast when a loud pop broke their fight and they both turned towards the direction of the noise.

"Draco?" Ginny asked looking thoroughly confused at the sight of him with messy hair and a shirt worn inside out over last nights' trousers.

"Where is she?" Draco demanded like a madman.

"Malfoy, mate..." Harry started.

"Potter where is Hermione?" Draco demanded louder this time.

Ginny came over and placed a hand soothingly on Draco's shoulder. He tensed up instead of relaxing. "Draco. She hasn't been here at all. I even went into her room to check if she'd like some breakfast. She wasn't there."

"What's going on Malfoy?" Harry asked worriedly. "You said last night everything was fine. What happened?"

But Draco barely heard what Harry had said as he stormed in the direction of her room.

Ginny and Harry gave each other identical, questioning looks before following him into Hermione's room.

They found him standing in the middle of the room, a parchment in his hand and the most defeated look on his face.

Ginny reflexively reached for Harry's hand and he protectively wrapped his fingers with hers.

Draco's eyes were glued to the piece of parchment in his hand.

"Malfoy..." Harry said.

Without looking up, Draco said, "She's gone."

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**I know you hate me. But please don't.**

**Granted Hermione is OOC and running away is not what Hermione Granger would do.**

**She would face anything headlong, but she's a different person now and running away is what helps her deal with things, even though it's not how it should be done.**

**but i hope her POV was satisfactory..**

**Thanks for reading!**

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	41. Chapter 41

**A very warm thank you to;**

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**I'm overwhelmed by the intensity of response to Hermione's runaway act.**  
><strong>I'm glad this story has still kept you all entertained. I hope you continue reading like you have been.<strong>

**Thank you !**

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><strong>CHAPTER 41.<strong>

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"What do you mean by she's gone?" Harry's voice harboured dangerously as he felt his wife's fingers go limp in his hand.

Ginny looked shocked and distraught not unlike Draco himself.

"Two words Potter. She's. Gone. Get a bloody dictionary if it stumps you." Draco said acerbically before he abruptly apparated away with a loud and angry pop.

"Harry... The parchment..." Ginny said, pointing at the piece that was on the floor.

Harry started out of his reverie and accioed the parchment into his hands.

_Draco,_  
><em>I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. It's not fair.<em>  
><em>This time I'm leaving for good.<em>

Ginny and Harry stared at each other unbelievingly.

"What in the world is happening? Malfoy sent a patronus saying he's taking Hermione home. And now he comes looking for her. Clearly something upset her and she's taken off again. I swear to Merlin if he's done something to offend her I will..."

"Harry! Harry!" Ginny protested. "Calm down. I'm sure Draco didn't have anything to do with it. Didn't you see him? He looked very upset himself."

"Then why is this note addressed to Draco? I bet something has happened that caused her to flee." Harry fretted. "We need to find Malfoy."

"Harry, darling. Listen to me. You need to calm down. I know it's upsetting that Hermione's fled again especially just after we found her, but you need to remember that Draco is more worried about it all. He's probably going to blame himself about it. We can't judge unless we know the whole story." Ginny reasoned.

Harry sighed. "I suppose you're right. But what can be done now? Hermione's gone and Malfoy just left. There's no one to give us any answers."

"Get ready." Ginny said. "We'll pop by Malfoy's flat and if he's there which is unlikely, we demand some explanation. If not we go over to her hospital and take it from there."

Harry nodded, glad that they had some plan, however bleak it sounded. In truth, he knew it was just futile. Hermione was good at hiding. If she really wanted to, she could stay hidden for life. It had taken her over a year and a half to talk to them; that too on Draco's insistence. Godric knew how long it would take for her to reach out to them now.

They got dressed quickly and apparated together to Draco's. The flat looked empty. Ginny cast a homenum revelio to hasten the process of finding someone here. It came out negative.

"They're not here." She said dejected, even though she was prepared for it.

"Hey, we never did expect to find them here now did we?" Harry consoled her. "Let's just look around."

They tiptoed their way into the living room, which was a slight mess. Draco and Hermione's formal robes lay over the floor heaped up. The sofa was tilted at an unnatural angle, and Draco's beloved lampshade was lying on the floor.

"What in the world happened here?" Harry asked out loud.

"Do you think he got angry and pushed things around?" Ginny asked tentatively.

Harry shrugged. "Why are Hermione's robes on the floor?"

"She came here last night. She must have removed them." Ginny said.

"None of this makes sense. Come on; let's go check the rest of the house." Harry urged as he kicked one of Hermione's heels out of his way.

"Strange that her stuff happens to be lying around here but she's missing." Ginny noted.

They reached Draco's bedroom and like the living room, it too was slightly messy. The bed looked thoroughly slept in and a pillow was on the floor and half of the duvet was touching the ground.

Hermione's other shoe was lying at the corner of the bed.

"Harry?" Ginny said urgently. "We need to go to Hermione's room immediately."

"But Ginny..." Harry barely managed to say when he felt the familiar but not pleasant pull of apparition. He was panting by the time they reached their destination.

"Some... warning would... have been nice..." He said, trying to catch his breath.

"I told you we had to go Harry." Ginny snapped and quickly started moving around.

"I thought it would be up for discussion. Didn't expect you to kidnap me then and there." Harry argued.

Ginny didn't comment but continued to open her cupboards and drawers. She quickly went over to the bathroom and Harry could hear the opening and shutting of cabinets.

"Ginny ... Mind telling me.." He started but stopped as Ginny came out of the bathroom looking slightly lost.

"Gin? What's going on love?" He asked gently.

"Harry... I don't want to sound absurd or out of line here, but I think.." She gulped and made a face. "I'm not really sure.. But it all points out to it. It's only an assumption." Ginny said.

"What is it Ginny?" Harry asked impatiently.

His feisty wife usually never stammered or thought twice about speaking her mind. Even when she was wrong. He was starting to get worried when she was fighting for words.

Ginny swallowed. "I think Hermione and Draco slept together." She said softly and all in one breath, hoping silently, that Harry hadn't heard it, which was silly really; because if he hadn't then she would just have to repeat it again. She knew how protective her husband was of Hermione, and she really didn't want the rare, slowly budding friendship between Draco and Harry to plummet six feet under over this.

Harry stiffened, his eyes narrowed and his body language changed considerably. Ginny groaned in her mind and was torn between being mad at Draco for leaving her alone to confront an enraged Harry, and being relieved that he wasn't actually here, so she could calm Harry down by the time he actually came.

"No." He said finally. "It can't be. How in the world did you even come to that conclusion? You're right. It's absurd."

"Is it really Harry?" Ginny countered. "Think about it. She's always loved him, you told me so yourself. They are both adults. I know she's a sister to you but you need to understand that she can do what she wants as an adult. And I know for a fact Draco would die for her. He has always loved her and still does. Maybe they finally saw that. Why would it be impossible for something like that to happen?"

"But ..." Harry said.

"Her things are all over Draco's flat. The bed was a mess. Draco was a mess when he came over earlier... It all points out to that Harry." Ginny deduced.

"But.. But then why would she leave? If they finally worked things out and declared their love to each other then why would she just up and leave again Ginny?" Harry asked. "I'm not averse to their friendship to evolve into something... Physical... But she left. She left Gin. That can't be good. Something bad must have happened. She wouldn't have left otherwise."

Ginny was thinking. "I checked her cupboards and drawers. All empty. Even the bathroom. She's really gone."

Harry ran his hand through his unruly black hair and plonked on the bed, sighing defeatedly. "What could he have done? I swear to Merlin if he has a hand in this I will... "

"Harry." Ginny said gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "He loves her unconditionally. I've seen it in his eyes. He would never do anything to hurt her. Whatever happened yesterday, I'm not sure. But I'm certain that Draco intentionally would never do anything to make her uncomfortable. You saw him today. He looked as distraught as us. Maybe more."

Harry let his wife's words sink into him. It was true that he had found out from Ginny that Draco indeed loved Hermione. And from his chat with Hermione earlier, it was clear that she had loved him back. And she still did. Harry wanted Hermione to be happy and Draco wanted the same. It was obvious what was supposed to happen. Hermione would have to realise Draco's feelings for her and vice versa.

Harry and Ginny had hoped that with finding Hermione, Draco could also help her find herself. Harry would never have admitted this long ago, but it was true. Draco Malfoy was good for Hermione. They really cared for each other. After all, Draco had found her. Granted, it was by accident, but nevertheless he did find her. And it was because of him that Hermione had taken the step to slowly let people into her life again.

Whatever had happened last night that had caused her to run away again was between the two of them. Draco surely wouldn't want her to go away and he was probably all over the city trying to find her. Ginny was right. They were both responsible adults and had a right to do as they wished. It was stupid of him to jump to the old conclusion of not trusting Malfoy. He was trying. He really was, and he hated to admit it but Malfoy was starting to grow on him. He could imagine now why Hermione would have befriended him in the first place. She always believed in giving people a chance. She hung on to hope even when things looked difficult.

Well, whatever occurred between Malfoy and Hermione was actually none of his business. What mattered now was finding Hermione. Harry hoped that Malfoy would return soon so that they could go about planning.

"You're right. I'm just being the old Hogwarts Harry. I can't help it Gin. It's Hermione. We just got her back. I can't lose her again." Harry choked.

"Sshh honey." Ginny said as she slid next to him on the bed. She held his face gently in her palms and looked him in the eye. "We'll find her. We will." She raised her lips to his and kissed him passionately, trying to console him.

He kissed her back ferociously, channelling his anger and frustration and helplessness all into it.

A sound of apparition was heard in the living room and Ginny abruptly broke the kiss. "Did you hear that?" She asked.

Harry nodded, getting up. "It could be Malfoy." He said as he made his way toward the other room.

Ginny followed him when they heard a voice.

"Hello? Draco? You in here?"

"That's Katherine!" Ginny said as she rushed to get to the living room.

"Katherine?" Ginny asked.

"Oh Ginny. Hi. Is Draco here?" Katherine asked.

"No. Why? Did he come to see you? Do you have any idea where he could be if not here?" Harry asked.

Katherine took a deep breath. "Draco came by earlier at the hospital. He was a mess. I mean, I've usually seen him all cool and calm. Knowing what to do. He wasn't so scattered even when he was in the hospital. So he came by and demanded to see Hermione. Delinda didn't know how to handle this and so she sent him to me." Katherine paused. "He came and asked for Hermione. I told him she was still on leave and wouldn't join until the day after. He asked if she had visited the hospital at all since morning. I said no. Then he told me that he couldn't find Hermione and that if she did stop by I must bring her immediately to him. I went by his flat and it was empty so I thought he would be here."

Ginny and Harry listened to Katherine carefully. It looked like Draco had had the same idea of going to the hospital to check for Hermione. But clearly she hadn't been there.

"Did you check properly for her in the hospital? Maybe she was there and didn't meet you." Ginny asked.

Katherine shook her head. "No. She hasn't been to the hospital at all. We have a magical signature register. Everyone on the staff has to sign in and out. There is no other way."

Ginny sighed. "You came to look for Draco?"

"Oh yeah." Katherine piped up. "I got this by owl just a few minutes ago and I thought I'd come show it to Draco." She said handing a parchment to Ginny.

"It's from Hermione!" Ginny said excitedly.  
>Katherine nodded. Harry inched closer to read what was written in it. As Ginny and Harry read on, their faces that had been lit up by hope seemed to fall.<p>

"This... These are instructions for you Katherine. It doesn't say anything about where she is or when she'll be back." Ginny said with a hitch in her breath.

Katherine nodded sadly. "I know. All she wrote was to inform the hospital that she was on an indefinite leave. And if they have a problem with that then she would consider herself resigning. Her pay is supposed to be directed to the rent account for her flat. Looks like she was serious about leaving."

"This creates more questions than we had." Harry said.

"Is everything okay? I mean I don't know what's happening but I really want to help." Katherine said earnestly.

"Thanks Katherine." Ginny smiled. "We would really appreciate the help. We don't know what to do ourselves, but it would help if you kept your eyes open for her, in case you see her anywhere."

"I will. But please do let me know if I can do anything more." Katherine said.

Harry and Ginny nodded as she apparated away. They looked at each other worriedly.

"I hate these notes she's left." Harry grumbled. "Gives such a feeling of finality."

"Remember when she used to send blank parchments?" Ginny smirked. "They seem better now, don't they?"

Harry laughed mirthlessly. "I don't know what to do now Gin."

"Me neither love. Me neither." Ginny said as she mirrored his disappointment.

Just then Draco apparated into the living room, looking worse than he did when he had left in the morning. He looked so lost and dejected that even if Harry had been livid with him, one look at him would have shown that he was devastated by it all.

He went straight to the dining table and pulled up a chair. Sitting down, he placed his head in his hands. "I drove her away. We had her and I drove her away." He said without looking up. "She was doing so much better. I was sure she would get better if she reconnected with herself and the people she loved. I should have left. I should have just left before things got out of hand. I should have known I would slip up sometime..."

Ginny went over to the table and put a comforting hand on Draco's shoulder. "Draco, don't blame yourself please. She made such great progress and it was all your doing. She actually consented to see us because of you. That counts for something. You said so yourself that she was making progress."

Draco nodded. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was disarray. He still had his shirt inside out and he looked like he had fought a war. Ginny's heart went out to him. He was upset all the time when they had been unable to find Hermione in the past. But that was a calm and under control kind of upset. Totally contrary to what he seemed to be right now. To have found her and brought her back on track only to lose her again was killing him. And he blamed himself for it.

Ginny hugged him tightly and patted his back. It felt odd, comforting Draco Malfoy but it also felt right.

"I shouldn't have. So stupid. So bloody stupid." He kept saying.

Harry came and took the 3rd seat on the table. Ginny let go of Draco and started making some tea. "Want to talk about it?" She ventured.

Draco looked up for a moment, weighing his answer. Giving up, he started. "I... I said something yesterday.. At the ball.. We were in the balcony, having a good time. Laughing even. I said something and she just started crying. She was hysterical for a bit. I panicked and wondered if I should call for you or a Healer or someone. But then she was fine. I thought I'd take her home, make her some tea and talk to her about what had happened. We came to my flat and she was still crying. But at least she wasn't frozen or anything like she was earlier. I was really scared." Draco gulped.

Ginny put some hot tea in front of him and urged him to have some. She could see Harry mentally fighting his urge to console Draco and tell him off at the same time. Ginny spoke up before he could say anything. "I'm sure you handled her just fine. What happened then?" She gently urged him.

Draco swallowed some of the piping hot liquid that burned his throat but he didn't even flinch at the pain. "Uh.. I apologised to her. Tried to make her feel better and then she... She... Uh.. She kissed me." He said, staring into the cup of tea.

Harry and Ginny looked at each other giving knowing looks that confirmed Ginny's suspicions. Ginny started to run various scenarios in her mind, knowing well by now why Hermione must have run away.

"I tried to pull away. I really did." Draco continued as he looked at Harry, trying to defend himself. "It's not that I didn't want it. I've loved her for years. But not like this. I couldn't take advantage of her vulnerability."

"No one's blaming you Draco. Harry understands. We don't judge you at all, we don't, do we Harry?" Ginny prompted, looking at Harry.

Harry cleared his throat. He really didn't like this heart to heart but it was important to let Draco know that he didn't hold any hard feelings. "Malfoy. It's okay. I'm not going to go big brother on you. Both you and Hermione are adults. It's alright. Go on."

There was a slight flicker of relief in Draco's eyes as he looked at Ginny and Harry and then back into his cup of tea. "I'm not apologising for what I did. I don't regret it. I only feel guilty about how it happened."

"We understand Draco. There's nothing wrong in that." Ginny convinced him.

"I pulled away." Draco continued."And she looked at me with the strangest expression. I mean, I just wanted to slow it down, she was upset and weak. She didn't know what she was doing. I wanted to step up and do the responsible thing for the first time in my life." He laughed. "But I couldn't. I looked into her eyes and I saw hurt and rejection swirling in those eyes. She looked so confused."

Draco drained the rest of his and stood up and started pacing around. "I really, truly wanted to walk away but just looking at her... She was so lonely and it was like she was silently beckoning me. I just couldn't ... I couldn't leave. And then before I knew it... We ... Were on my bed and things just accelerated from there. I went to bed wishing I could wake up with her next to me like this every day and I woke up this morning to nothing." He finished.

"I knew something would go wrong in the morning. I mean its Hermione. Have you ever known her not to feel responsible for anything?" Draco asked.

"She feels guilty." Ginny realised. "That's why she said sorry to you in the note."

"Hermione feels like she took advantage of you. But running away is bit too extreme don't you think?" Harry asked.

"Harry, love you need to remember that she was extremely vulnerable last night. She did it once remember. She probably can't face Draco right now." Ginny reasoned.

"Malfoy, if you don't mind me asking.. What.. Um.. What was it that you said that upset her so much?" Harry asked cautiously.

Draco sighed. It wasn't easy baring it all in front of the Potter's. Well, Ginny he could have spoken to easily, but Potter; well, let's say this wasn't the kind of conversation he wanted to have anytime soon with Potter. But they were here and he had no one else who was close to Hermione and understood her as well as they did. They deserved to know why Hermione had left in midst of their visit here.

"I said she'd make a great mum one day. And she just.. She was different after that." Draco sighed. "I had no idea it would escalate this way. She's never mentioned anything about it before. I feel so bloody angry with myself."

Harry let out a long breath. Everything seemed to fit in place now. Hermione would decidedly get upset over that, especially after their conversation earlier. She must have been hurting more than she had shown. He understood now how and why the events that followed had happened.

Ginny looked slightly confused. She looked at Harry enquiringly. "We just spoke about it in the afternoon." Harry told Ginny. "Hermione still feels guilty about not having children with Ron." He explained. "Ron always wanted kids and Hermione wanted to wait. She thinks it's the least she could have done and Ron died without having children."

Ginny and Draco both looked shocked by the revelation. Harry looked uncomfortable telling this to them. Usually he wouldn't have said anything. It wasn't his story to tell, but the circumstances were such that he had to say something.

"But they were barely married a year and a half." Ginny argued.

Harry nodded. "That was the premise of Hermione's reasoning too. But she won't stop feeling like it was her fault."

"But we didn't know that Ron was going to die did we? There's so much we could have done differently. Why would she blame herself?" Ginny asked.

"She would. It's just her. There's probably a long list of other things that she had absolutely no control over that she feels responsible for. She thrives on guilt." Draco answered.

Ginny shook her head sadly. "Draco! I just remembered. Katherine stopped by earlier. She received a letter from Hermione stating that she was taking an indefinite leave from the hospital. I'm worried this means that she's not coming back anytime soon."

Draco sighed. "I drove her away. She was doing so well. I drove her away."

"None of that Draco Malfoy." Ginny said sharply. "We have our hands full with one person who has a conscience that gets guilty faster than we can say Merlin. We don't need you to add to that. Whatever took place between the two of you has happened and it's done with. We need to focus on finding Hermione."

"She's right Malfoy." Harry quipped. "No point in crying over spilt milk."

Draco and Ginny both looked at him weirdly, figuring that he just used one of the strange muggle idioms he was fond of. They didn't even bother asking for its meaning.

"I went by her parents. She's not gone there either. I didn't expect her to." Draco said. "I went to all the places we went together over the past two months. She hadn't been there either." Draco said.

"How can you be so sure?" Harry asked.

"I cast a locating charm specific for her. She hadn't been there. And if she does go there now or later, I'll be notified. I left a specific ward for her in those places." Draco replied.

"That was good thinking Draco." Ginny said impressed. "That will really help us find her if she does decide to go to any of the places."

Harry stood up suddenly. "I think we should go to the ministry here. Let's request the people there to let us know if she applies for a portkey or apparition licence or anything. If she does, that would narrow down our search."

Draco nodded and got up immediately, glad that they finally had something to do.

Ginny went to her room to get their coats. "Harry?" She cried out from her room.

Draco and Harry looked at each other wondering if they should go in, when Ginny came out with a piece of parchment and without the coats. "Hermione left us this. I can't believe I didn't see it earlier." Ginny said.

Harry held the note and started reading it with Draco over his shoulder reading it too.

_Harry and Ginny,_  
><em>I can't say how sorry I am to leave you like this.<em>  
><em>You both came for me and here I am running away again.<em>  
><em>I know you are disappointed in me.<em>  
><em>But not more than I am with myself.<em>  
><em>I truly cherish every moment we spent together.<em>  
><em>I wish I didn't have to leave you there worrying about me because I know you will.<em>  
><em>But I'll be fine.<em>  
><em>I just need some more time.<em>  
><em>I know I said that last time and it was a long time before I met you.<em>  
><em>I don't know what I'm going to do but I just need to go.<em>  
><em>I'm not worth all the trouble.<em>  
><em>Don't worry about me.<em>  
><em>I'm really sorry.<em>

_Hermione._

"This doesn't sound good." Ginny whispered.

"It's like before all over again." Draco said defeated.

"Except we'll find her this time." Harry said, jaw set and determination in his eyes. "She's bloody more than worth it, why can't she see that?"

"You found her once Draco." Ginny said kindly. "You'll find her again."

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**Okay..**

**Nothing exciting.. Filler of sorts.**

**Wanted to show Harry- Draco- Ginny interaction in this chapter!**

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**Thanks for reading!**


	42. Chapter 42

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**CHAPTER 42.**

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Hermione hated running away. She really did. But yet again, she had gone and done exactly the same thing. She ran.

The only difference between her running away then and running away now was that the last time, she genuinely wanted to be left alone. She wanted to hide away from the pitying looks and pained faces. Any reminder of her loss... or the Weasley's loss was too hard to take. And she needed to hide away from it all.

That wasn't normal mourning. It really wasn't. Granted, Ron had been her husband. She had loved him, for Merlin's sake. But she knew deep down that her pain and cowardice was grief mingled with guilt. It wasn't like she held herself responsible for his death. No.

Spattergroit was an extremely deadly disease and it didn't spare anyone above the age of 13. There was nothing she could have done as a Healer.

But she could have been a better wife. She could have loved him completely. It was the least he deserved. She could have given him a child... She should have told him about Draco. There was so much she could have done but didn't. And the burden of all that was as great as that of his loss.

And there was no way she could bear the sympathy of people when they had no clue, no idea of what she was feeling. Hell, she felt she was cheating people of their sympathy. She certainly didn't deserve any. If only she had come clean about Draco to Ron earlier; maybe, just maybe she would be feeling less guilty.

So she ran. Away from it all. And today was no different. Except she didn't want to. She wished she could have been selfish and stayed. She wished she could have woken up next to Draco, wrapped in his embrace against his solid chest where she could hear his heart pumping blood into his body, proof that he was well and alive.

She wished she could replay the night before, every night with Draco but without him looking shocked and so unwilling a participant. She wished he would say to her that he loved her and proceed to stay that way forever.

This was all wishful thinking of course. Even if say, hypothetically, he had said and done those things, there was no way Hermione would have stayed. She was far too damaged as a person and she would never repeat the mistake she made with Ron with Draco. It took the death of Ron for her to fully realise the extent of how twisted and knee deep she was in the melee of her own feelings and she wasn't going to inflict the same upon Draco.

Both Ron and Draco were wonderful people who deserved to be happy with someone who gave their heart to them fully. Someone who wouldn't be thinking about the other guiltily when they were sharing moments of love and passion with them.

And if running away meant allowing Draco to finally move on with his life and find that special someone, then run away she would. He had helped her enough already and she promised herself she wouldn't slip into the banal existence she had been living all these months. That would make all of Draco's hard work redundant. No. She would start anew, as happy as she could. She just needed some time. Some more time to let it sink into her that the last time she had been kissed and held by Draco so lovingly; was indeed for the last time.

She looked around and with a swift wave of her wand, layers of dust cleared and she sighed. She was too tired to do anything else. She didn't want to, but her mind kept taking her back to the times she had spent with Draco.

Usually she had great restraint over her thoughts, but stowed away and pushed away thoughts have an annoying way of re-appearing just when you don't want them to.

She reclined against the wooden frame of the bed and closed her eyes and sighed and allowed herself to think back however much she could before she got tired and would fall asleep.

_Hermione was bursting to confront Draco about the little polyjuice stunt he had played. Although she was blown away by the degree to which he was ready to keep her safe, she was still livid with what he had done. Sure, he was allowed to keep her safe but not at the expense of his own safety!_

_What if Umbridge had not stopped where she had? What if the potion had worn away and his true identity would have been in the open? What if someone had noticed the ring like Blaise had and questioned it? What if.. What if... What if... There were a million other scenarios she could produce whose outcome could have been far from favourable._

_She really really wanted to have his head for doing something so decidedly stupid and reckless; he wasn't a bloody Gryffindor for Merlin's sake! He had no excuse for such self righteous and noble carelessness!_

_Try as she may, she couldn't stop getting all worked up about his act without a small smile creeping slyly up her lips. She was still angry with him, but the entire ordeal was to keep her from being subjected to the unforgivable. And Draco had not stopped to think at all of how it would affect him. All for her. For her._

_She didn't know if he did feel for her the same way he felt for him. But what he had just done, that was no small feat. It screamed out to her that he loved her just as much as she loved him if not more. And that thought lit her face up like a Christmas tree. But she didn't want to be too presumptuous. Draco and she were the best of friends. They cared for each other deeply. Such protectiveness could also be a result of that friendship they shared._

_Hermione frowned. Although his friendship was very important to her, she couldn't help but hope that it was more than that. She had started falling for him and now the thought of being only friends with him was too painful. She wanted more. And even though she wouldn't admit it till she knew for sure what Draco felt about it, she still couldn't stop wanting to further their relationship._

_But somehow time had never been on her side. Draco had taken the better part of the day to recover from the Cruciatus and before Hermione could have any conversation about it with him, Harry had started to have a vision about Sirius being in danger. They had to leave for the ministry immediately and since Hermione couldn't openly speak to Draco about anything, she had left without informing him._

_Things happened so fast after that night that Hermione was in a daze. So many death eaters were captured that night at the ministry, the wizarding world finally believed that Voldemort was back, panic took over, Sirius had died and Harry was inconsolable. Hermione hadn't had a moment to spare._

_She must have conversed with Draco via the two way diary just once to confirm that she was alright and he wrote back saying that he wouldn't be able to keep in touch with her for a long time till he could free his father. But he did tell her to take care and complete all her tasks and wait for him because when he would come back, he wouldn't let go of her for a long time and infringe on every free moment she had to catch up with her._

_Wait for him. She smiled when he wrote the last line. They hadn't met or spoken personally after that night in the Room of Requirement and she was bursting to tell him that she loved him. To hell with playing it safe, she couldn't keep it in her any longer._

_Besides, the last line he had written in the diary was unlike anything he had said to her before. Was it possible that he was trying to flirt with her?_

_She turned red at the thought and grinned like an idiot. Merlin! She had it bad!_

_She couldn't wait for the summer to be over already and start school where she could meet Draco and see him every day. Not talking to him was hard, but at least the sight of his pale, angular, beautiful face and cold, mercurial eyes that softened into liquid pools of pewter at the sight of her was enough to get her through the day._

_She wistfully kept checking her diary every 3 hours, hoping for some words, any words to materialise on its parchment. But none did for almost the entire first half of the summer._

_Suddenly one day, she was toying with the idea of being the one to initiate a conversation. She stayed with a quill in her hand, tip poised over the parchment for a long time, debating if it would be a good idea. Draco had clearly said that she must wait for him to start any form of interaction. They lived in dangerous times now more than ever and it couldn't hurt to be overly cautious._

_Nevertheless, an innocent greeting couldn't be classified as revealing could it? She would just write something like hello or write back or something random without revealing her identity. Even if the diary did fall into strange hands then no one would be suspicious of finding writing in it. And if Draco happened to look at it and saw the words on it then perhaps he would actually write back sooner._

_She was longing to have some sort of contact with him. The last she had seen him, held him, touched him and felt his presence was in the room where he was almost delirious with pain and barely conscious._

_Her entire body tingled at the memory of the kiss that they had shared. It didn't help her thoughts at all right now, and she wished she could be with him right now, kissing him like she had that day. She couldn't believe all the time she had wasted not realising how she felt about him. And now that she finally did, he was so far away that all she could do was relive the moments with him. And she was glad that the last memory she had with him before they would meet again was that of their kiss._

_She sighed and looked at her blank page again, wondering if she should write something or not. Shaking her head, she capped her quill and decided to shut the book. Just as she was going to clamp it shut, she thought she saw movement on it._

_Wrinkling her brow, she opened it again and sure enough there was writing on it. Her heart hammered away at the sight of beautifully written black words in front of her eyes. She had never had this reaction to his words before. But then again, she hadn't been pining for him and longing for his messages to appear before either._

**_Hello you!_**

_Hello you! Hello you! How was it that such two silly words had the ability to totally play havoc with her vitals? She was certain that she would need a calming draught next time he wrote something._

_**Draco?** She scribbled as fast as she could, breathing heavily and willing her heart to stop with the palpitations._

**_Who else?_**

_She almost heard him laugh mockingly._

**_How are you? I've been waiting all month for something? Are you fine? I'm so relieved you wrote. I almost..._**

**_Hermione! Hermione! Breathe for a moment!_**

_Yes of course. Breathe Hermione._

**_Draco, I missed you. _**

**_I missed this too Hermione. I missed you too..._**

**_Are you alright?_**

**_I'm not hurt or anything if that's what you're asking._**

**_Draco..._**

**_Hermione... I don't have much time. I don't know when I'll be able to write again._**

**_Why? Is something wrong?_**

**_Nothing's wrong. I'm just never alone. It's too dangerous to write to you._**

**_What's happening?_**

**_I need to get my father out. The ministry has captured him and I'm busy meeting with people to free him._**

**_Oh._**

**_I know you fought him at the ministry Hermione, but he's my father. I have to free him. Mother's beside herself with worry._**

**_You have to do what you have to do Draco._**

**_Thanks Hermione. I... I can't keep talking to you... We need to stop... At least till school starts._**

**_Draco... Why are you ..._**

**_Aunt Bella is staying with us._**

**_What?_**

**_Yeah. I can't tell you how terrifying that is._**

**_Bellatrix Lestrange is staying at your house?_**

**_Yeah. And she's with me almost all day. I can't risk using the diary in front of her._**

**_What about at night? You have to sleep sometime._**

**_Hermione, Aunt Bella is a very talented Legilimens. I'm scared..._**

**_You think she'll try probing your mind?_**

**_I know she will. She looks at me weirdly. I hate it... I keep waiting for her to push into my thoughts. I don't even know Occlumency._**

**_We'll try learning it once we start school._**

**_Okay. But I really need to let this summer pass without thinking about you. The further you are in my memories, the lesser she'll see. I can't risk your life._**

**_Draco ..._**

**_I'm sorry Hermione. But this is the last time I'm writing you before we see each other._**

**_Draco please.. Listen to me..._**

**_Hermione .. I don't have time.. I have to leave.._**

**_Draco .. I ... Draco, I love you._**

_There is a pause before the next words come on the diary and Hermione released the breath she had held for long._

**_Hermione, I_**

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**Okay... Maybe I shouldn't have ended it here.**

**But you know me by now..**

**I'm evil that way ;)**

**Hope you like the flashes; cause they're back baby!**

**I promise I'll try updating soon! I know how annoying cliffies can get!**

**ps: all the diary convos are bold.. i hope you can follow hermione and draco's chain coz i've left the non convo part normal..**

**thanks for reading!**


	43. Chapter 43

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**CHAPTER 43.**

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**HERMIONE'S POV:**

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_I couldn't believe I was finally seeing words materialise on the diary. I could have hugged the infuriating little book right now._

_His words "Hello you" seemed to catapult me in a sea of giddiness and for a moment I was wondering if Lavender or Parvati had finally gotten to me._

_He said he missed me. Did he really mean it? I mean, I know I'm dear to him but did he miss me like I missed him? Merlin! I'm behaving like a love struck teenager. Which I realised; I am, but still, I had imagined that when I would fall in love, it would be a calm and happy feeling minus the battiness that girls usually displayed. Turned out hormones and teen-age didn't spare even me._

_I don't know whether I liked this or not but what I knew for certain that Draco invoked a feeling in me that was decidedly foreign and I definitely liked feeling it._

_I didn't tell him but I'm pretty sure he would know, it was difficult to acknowledge that he would have to keep his distance from me even though we were only a written message away. But what he was doing was logical._

_What with death eaters swarming all over and especially; living with the deranged Bellatrix Lestrange it was only safe to do what he had suggested. Although why his aunt would ever want to probe his mind, I don't know. But it was better to be safe than sorry. We had spent 3 years without raising a doubt in Lucius Malfoy's eyes and that was only because we were extremely careful. Throwing caution to the winds; especially now that Voldemort was back would be very unwise. And Draco was as much in danger from the revelation of our friendship as I was._

_So if it took creating some distance between him and me for the sake of our safety then so be it. Although I was saddened by the thought that Draco needed immediate contact with me for me to be on his mind. I mean, he hadn't spoken to me for almost over a month and yet I was thinking about him almost all the time. Merlin knows that if someone delved into the depths of my mind any given time, Draco would be everywhere._

_But I was being stupid. Of course he thought about me as much as I did. Maybe more. And lately I had noticed him behave differently. Even before the entire polyjuice incident, he had started behaving differently. It took my realisations of feelings for him to make me more attentive towards him and I was certain he shared the same feelings towards me. The way he told me that he was going to spend every second infringing upon my free time, sent shivers of anticipation through my entire body and I bloody couldn't wait for this summer to be over already._

_If I wasn't so certain, I wouldn't go about wearing my feelings on my sleeve. I would bury my feelings and never risk the bond of friendship we shared. Having him as something more than a friend would be a dream come true but not having him at all wasn't even an option. But the admission of my feelings might tip the balance if he didn't see me the same way. And I didn't want to drive him away._

_But when he said that this was the last time he would be contacting me, something in me took over and the usually analytical and rational part of me got swept behind and the need to let him know that things would be alright despite of the darkness around him was great. I needed to let him know that I loved him and inspite of anything that would happen; I would be there for him. I needed to let him know that there was someone who loved him and was waiting for him irrespective of how difficult and dangerous the times ahead were. I wanted to tell him so much. So many emotions that I wish I could have just met him and said all these things to him personally, all in one breath because I know I wouldn't have the courage to look him in the eye and say it all as calmly as I was thinking about it right now._

_But I didn't have that opportunity and he didn't have the time. So I tried to let him know in the shortest and swiftest way possible. I didn't beat around the bush and I didn't think of the consequences. I didn't pave out after-scenarios. I had no time and no warning. I just acted on impulse and hoped that I wouldn't come to regret it later._

_I just went ahead and told him that I loved him._

_There! I had gone and done it._

_When I had written those words, I really didn't stop to think what I expected his reply to be. But as I waited with my breath stuck in my throat, I know what I certainly hadn't expected. I hadn't expected him to not reply at all. Of all the possible things he could have said, he didn't say anything._

_I waited. He had scribbled "Hermione, I " and it stopped right there. My eyes lingered on the line expectantly, waiting for the rest of the statement to appear. But it didn't. Maybe he was inking his quill. But it didn't take longer than 5 seconds to do that and Draco always used self inking quills anyway. Maybe he was thinking what to write back. That wouldn't be a good sign. If he had to think so much that meant he didn't feel the same way. But how long did it take to think of something, anything, to write back? Especially when he had started his sentence already. It seemed like he had wanted to say something but had stopped midway because he wasn't sure about it._

_But what could it be that he had wanted to write but was hesitating in doing so?_

_Hermione, I don't feel the same way._

_Hermione, I don't think we should be discussing this right now._

_Hermione, I don't know what you're talking about, we're just friends._

_Hermione, I don't love you that way._

_So many sentences came to my mind. It could be any of them._

_It was almost 5 minutes since he had written that utterly frustrating, incomplete reply and I had given up on the statement being completed. If he actually did have anything to say about it he would have said so already._

_I furiously brushed off my hot tears and slammed the book shut. I don't know why I was so disappointed. So upset and hurt. I clearly hadn't expected him to say "Hermione, I love you too." But then again what had I expected him to say?_

_This is what happens when you don't think things through. This is why I should stick to being thorough and logical and analytical. At least I would have prepared myself for every scenario. But now, not only had I gone and foolishly and blatantly admitted my feelings to him but I had also created a level of expectation from him._

_And if he wouldn't live up to it, who knows what would happen? Would I slowly start resenting him? Would he start avoiding me? Would I realise that him not reciprocating my feelings was a reason to stay away from him?_

_I pulled my hair and groaned. I was so so confused at this point that I don't even know what my anger and annoyance was directed at._

_I was bloody irritated with myself. There he was telling me about his problems and out of nowhere I sprung my feelings on him. Say, even if he did have feelings for me, anyone would be caught off guard. And his mental frame at this point was anything but romantic. It was easy for me to fantasize about him and my newfound love when I was safe at home. But he was all alone in the cold and dingy manor with a deranged aunt breathing down his neck, a death eater for a father and the imminent threat of Voldemort._

_Surely I would be the farthest thing on his mind. Yet, he was concerned of my safety. That spoke volumes. And what had I gone and done? Just unloaded all of my feelings onto him. Although I admit I had done it to make him feel better and to convey to him that I was there for him, he could have taken it in the wrong manner._

_I mentally chided myself. Why did I have to be impatient? I could have told him of my feelings at Hogwarts. When we were face to face. At least we wouldn't be able to run away from it._

_Yes, I was definitely annoyed with myself. I wish he had written something. Anything. Because it just left a lot to my imagination and none of it was positive. I just imagined him writing all possible things that I really wished he didn't feel._

_As I thought about it, my mind cooled down and the emotional rush I had experienced earlier was replaced by logic and I found that my irritation and annoyance that was earlier being directed towards him was now directed at me._

_I had been stupid and irrational. I should have respected his words when he said he had no time and opportunity to talk to me. I shouldn't have pushed it. Even though my intentions were noble, I shouldn't have just assumed that those were the words he would have wanted to hear. Yes, I accept that I wanted to say the words and even hear them from him. That would have been a dream come true. But it was wrong on my part to think that he would desire the same things._

_What he wanted to do was to bury me deep inside so that if anyone prodded his memories I would stay hidden. But what had I gone and done? I had just declared my love for him and let's admit it, even if he didn't feel the same way, he was still someone who cared about me and such a declaration from me would definitely get him thinking about me. And if he did love me too, then again he would end up thinking about me. Either way, I had just defeated the purpose of our conversation. I had managed to gain front row seats in his mind, when infact he wanted to get me out of it._

_Sigh Hermione! I thought to myself. Such an idiot you are._

_And I had over 6 weeks of agonising and analysing this mistake of mine over and over again. I wish I could talk to Draco about it. I was embarrassed as hell but I know that the only way out of this situation and the only way to actually overcome this was by doing the mature thing and talking it out with him._

_The more I thought about it, the more it looked like a folly on my part. I still angrily held on to the part that he could have said something at least or even not replied at all. That would have been more humane. But starting out with "Hermione, I " and just leaving it at that was criminal. I mean it was absolutely ruthless; like depriving someone of oxygen._

_I sighed again. And thought back to our kiss. That memory could really brighten my spirits. It made me so happy that I think I could produce a patronus enough to drive a dozen dementors away._

_His eyes locked into mine, the silent conversations they held with mine, the innocent brushes of our hands and the longer than necessary hugs we had been sharing lately, all reinforced my belief in my belief of his love for me._

_No, he hadn't told me that he loved me. But I had seen it in his eyes that night in the Room of Requirement and I think Blaise had seen it too. It was like this unspoken fact hanging between us, which he had the decency to not mention. I never relied on anything without solid deduction or proof but something deep inside me told me that I wasn't wrong._

_My love wasn't of the unrequited kind and I knew that inspite of my earlier misgivings, Draco loved me. I just knew. And I didn't need him to tell me that. Of course a verbal or written confirmation would be great, so that I wouldn't think this to be a total figment of my imagination but I knew that inspite of the uncertainty of it all, there was still reality in it._

_Maybe he had meant to write "Hermione, I love you too."_

_I decided that if I was going to assume at all, then I'd assume his words to be the one's I wanted I to hear._

_Even though I hadn't heard them yet._

_Maybe at this point, Some things were better left Unsaid._

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	44. Chapter 44

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**CHAPTER 44.**

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**.**  
><em><strong>Draco's POV:<strong>_

**.**

_I swear to Salazar, I don't know how I've lasted so long. If it weren't for the constant presence of Aunt Bella and the pressure of trying to set my father free from Azkaban, I would go stir crazy with my time and mind constantly on Hermione._

_But then again, if Aunt Bella wouldn't be here, I would be free to speak to Hermione whenever I wanted. And now that I knew for sure that Bella was a Death Eater and Voldemort really was back, I had to be very careful. Even though my father wasn't here, the presence of a horde of death eaters constantly coming and going and Bella too, I had to be very careful with my thoughts and actions._

_And I wouldn't do anything to jeopardise Hermione. If it meant I needed to stay away from contacting her the whole summer, so be it. _

_I had gone almost 6 weeks before I could talk to her. And by a stroke of luck, one afternoon I found myself completely alone at the manor. Well, mother was there of course, but she hated the takeover of her home by Death Eaters even more than I did. So I suppose I was safe. It was rare that I had the house to myself these days and I found myself being unable to resist the temptation that the blasted two way diary posed right now._

_"Dobby!" I called and the house elf appeared immediately._

_"Dobby was called? Master Draco?" The miniature little creature asked with his eyes wide with curiosity._

_"Yes Dobby. I need a favour from you." I asked. "The moment anybody and I mean absolutely anybody enters my wing and starts towards my suite; you must come and inform me. Especially if it's Bella."_

_"Dobby will see to Master being left alone. Dobby will not allow evil hair woman near Master." Dobby said enthusiastically._

_"Good Dobby. Thank you very much." I said and he popped out of my room._

_Pleased with my arrangements I opened the diary with anticipation. Although I had strictly told her not to communicate with me until I did, I secretly hoped she had written something. Anything. So that I'd know that she had been missing me. But knowing her love for rules and doing the right thing, I knew that it was highly unlikely that I would have a message waiting for me._

_I quickly opened to a fresh page and wrote my message, hoping she would reply. But chances were that it would be long before she saw the words. Not even ten seconds had passed and I saw words materializing on my page._

_My heart was thudding dangerously against my rib cage and my breastbone was probably aching to break its confines! She replied! And so swiftly!_

_It was as if she had left the page open for my message and was waiting for it!_

_I sensed her uneasiness at not being in touch with me for long through her words. I had the opportunity now. I had to explain why I had to stay away from her. And it was only a matter of few weeks. Soon school would resume and we could go back to meeting secretly as always._

_She seemed reluctant to spend the rest of the summer without talking to me. I could practically hear her whining through the book. Even though I wasn't exactly happy about this arrangement, I couldn't help but feel excited at her reaction to our separation. My entire body grew warm all over, sensing her concern and by the way she told me that she missed me._

_I really wanted to spend every waking moment with her, holding her, kissing her, drinking in her essence..._

_I don't know what came over me when i said that i was going to be infringing every free moment of her time the minute we were together in Hogwarts. I didn't want to come on too strong but i was practically dying to tell her what i'd been feeling for her for weeks._

_But this was neither the time nor the place for telling the girl of my dreams how much I loved her._

_This was getting too much. I shouldn't be allowing myself to get so carried away. It wouldn't do well for me and her if I spent so much time thinking about her. I had to stop and the first step to do that would include putting our conversations on hold._

_Against my wishes, I told her that this would be the last time we could communicate until we got back to school._  
><em>She seemed to hesitate a bit before she wrote back.<em>

_I would never, ever have expected what she wrote next. My eyes popped out and I stopped breathing as I continued to stare at the words that even I hadn't dared to imagine or fantasize her telling me._

_She loved me!_

_She really did!_

_Just the way I did!_

_She loved me back!_

_And I don't know how I was so dead sure about it but I could feel it deep within my bones that her written declaration was not of the platonic type._

_It was the love that two beings felt for each other that was above all else._

_ It was that inexplicable emotion that could get so overwhelming that it could render someone speechless. And unbelieving of the immense sense of happiness that came along with it._

_I ran my thumb over her words again, committing her writing to my memory. My heart was leaping with joy and it was with great restraint and difficulty that I managed to not call Dobby and have me apparate right this instant to wherever she was and snog the life out of her; that would be a sufficient enough reply to her words._

_Then I remembered, in my state of euphoria that she probably was still waiting, anxiously, for my reply, since I had been in my own reverie. Although this wasn't the way I had imagined that I would let her know my feelings, the moment demanded it and I grabbed the opportunity. There was no way I was leaving her guessing; especially after her brave and courageous display of feelings._

_I felt a surge of tingling warmth emanate through me as I rested my quill over the parchment to pour it all out._

_"Hermione, I ..._

_"Master Quick!" Dobby apparated with a sharp pop!_

_My quill fell on the floor and a few droplets of ink gushed out on my rug._

_"The woman arrives, Master... She is hurrying her way... Master asked Dobby to tell... "He went on._

_Quill forgotten, I look around in a state of panic. Everything seems to be in place. Hurrying like a storm, I charm my diary shut and bury it deep in my closet drawer, charming it shut too._

_"Thank you Dobby. Very much. You must leave now before someone.. " I start to say but Dobby gave me an apologetic look and vanished before I could even complete my statement._

_Before I could even marvel at the turn of events, I heard the tall, double doors to my suite open and I turned my gaze as calmly as I could towards the door. My heart was thudding again and this time due to a completely different reason._

_I slipped the mask of bored indifference over my face and hoped that it was good enough to conceal everything that was waging a war of thoughts in my mind._

_"Draco dear, I hope you weren't lonely." Bella's deceptively encouraging voice swam into the room as she made her way in. "After all your efforts, I thought I should let you rest. I hope you can forgive your dear aunt for depriving you of some excitement."_

_"Nothing of that sort Aunt Bella." I said smoothly. "I'm certain you have valid arguments for doing so."_

_She came closer and held my shoulders, looking, with what I could strangely describe as pride in her eyes._

_"What an honourable young man you have turned out to become Draco darling. I am so proud of you. And I am going to be even more proud soon." Bella said excitedly with a mad glint in her eye._

_My guard was completely up now. Bella being happy was always bad. I wonder what had caused her to be in such a cheerful mood._

_"But before I say too much, there is a surprise for you." She gushed. My jaw clenched. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to be good. "Your efforts have been rewarded. I have a visitor for you."_

_She flailed her arms dramatically towards my open doors and I followed her actions and directed my sight towards what she was pointing at._

_My breath hitched and I'm sure for a fraction of a second my facade came undone. Then my eyes hardened again and I steadied my voice, hoping it wouldn't betray the fluttering bundle of nerves I had become on seeing the 'surprise'._

_"Father... Welcome!"_

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	45. Chapter 45

**CHAPTER 45.**

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_**DRACO'S POV:**_

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_"Father... Welcome!" I barely managed to spit out from my mouth without it showing like I had some bad taste lingering._

_"Thank you my boy." Lucius said as he continued to scrutinise me._

_I got ready for an onslaught of words, legilimency, anything really, because in spite of Lucius spending over 2 months in Azkaban, he didn't look any less formidable. Sure, he had lost some weight and his usually shiny, long silver hair stood out but today it was limp against his scalp. His eyes held a hardness that even his usual evil streak didn't bring. Perhaps, Azkaban does this to one._

_Irrespective of that, I didn't want to take any chances. Weak or not, I knew my father well. After his defeat at the Ministry, he must be really vengeful. And I had to be doubly careful._

_"I regret I couldn't do anything sooner Father. Aunt Bella and I tried to our fullest capacity to infiltrate the ministry at the earliest." I said, looking apologetic._

_"Rubbish! Lucius, Draco is being modest. Such a young boy, only of 16 and he held many meetings to set you free. And here you are now and we have big plans." Bella laughed maniacally. "No one locks up the main supporters of my Dark Lord and gets away with it."_

_I must have done a really good job of pretending to intimidate and threaten every ministry official alive. Bella was happy with me and my father actually looked at me like he was pleased._

_"Is that true son?" Father drawled, his eyes never leaving me. "Then I must express my gratitude in a proper manner."_

_My heart sank. Proper manner? I don't even know what that meant. But I had stayed with my father enough to know that it wouldn't be good news. Bella taking up residence at Malfoy Manor and Death Eaters openly coming and going was never good. I just wanted to put all this behind me and be at Hogwarts as soon as possible. That was the only place I ever felt safe._

_With Hermione. Where I belonged. And I hadn't even had the chance to tell her how I felt. She must be heartbroken. And hurt. I felt so guilty. But there was nothing I could do about it at the moment. I had been lucky that I hadn't been caught in the act. I would have to clear it up with her later. For now it would have to wait._

_"Oh yes Lucius!" Bella exclaimed with the ever present crazed glint in her eyes. "We must celebrate today. Why don't you tell Draco dear here about tonight's dinner?"_

_I turned quizzical eyebrows up and looked at my father. Would I be a horrible person if I was wishing deep down for my father to have never been released from Azkaban? I knew the answer. I would be a terrible son for hoping that but maybe not such a bad person. I knew firsthand the horrible things my father was capable of doing and for that I wish he had never been let free. But it was too late for that now. I had a sinking feeling that things could only go downhill from here._

_"In the event of my release, I have kept a gathering of... close acquaintances if you will, and I wish to introduce you formally to each and every one of them." Lucius said. "You have to be present. It's time you start looking into the Malfoy affairs."_

_No way in hell! Father wanted me to meet his death eater cronies? Why? I was only a boy. Besides, I had heard mum take a promise from him that he would never involve me with his dark work. It had been one of the umpteen issues they fought about. Usually mother was forced into submission but for some reason, she never backed down about this. I could hear them arguing loudly about this through 3 rooms._

_What had happened? This wasn't good. Mum wouldn't be happy. But Bella looked like the moon had been offered to her._

_"Do you know what this means Draco?" She hissed in anticipation."It's a big step for you boy. Be sure to be dressed well and do arrive at the Ballroom on time."_

_"Yes Aunt Bella, Father." I managed to nod and choke out. I wanted to run the hell out of there._

_Lucius gave me a long look and acknowledged my response with a slight nod of his head and turned and with a great billowing of his robes, exited my room._

_Bella stood in her place. "You are the sole heir of the Malfoy and the Black lines son. This is a great honour and a big responsibility to shoulder. I'm sure you shall not disappoint." She smiled and the gap within her black teeth made me cringe._

_I nodded stoically and she left with a pleased air about her._

_When I was sure my room was empty, I quietly shut the door and sank into my armchair._

_This was terrible. Terrible indeed. Lucius was back, Bella made daily appearances into my house and there was a dinner tonight that I was obligated under pressure to attend. I didn't need a bloody seer to know that life as I knew it would never be the same from now on._

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_._

_I had been summoned to my Father's library 30 minutes before the guests would start arriving for the dinner. I wasn't surprised. I had been expecting it. It was no secret that my father wasn't particularly fond of Bella. I didn't know the reason and I wasn't sure about how Bella felt about Lucius and frankly I didn't care enough. I knew that there was something he wanted to discuss in private with me. And I knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good._

_"Ah Draco. Good, you're here." Lucius said flatly as an elf served him a goblet of firewhiskey. "I wish to discuss some events with you. I shall explain the nature and purpose of tonight's meeting to you and I wish you to be in full agreement to the part you are supposed to play."_

_I gulped. No! My mind screamed out loud but my lips remained fixed in the pseudo confident sneer I had mastered. Father interpreted my look as attention and continued to address me._

_"Draco, you must have realised by now what a difficult spot I was in. Since you took almost two months to get me out." He spat out with malice instead of gratitude._

_The spot you were in was created by you itself, you fanatic! I wanted to scream out at him. But I was a Slytherin was a reason. Preservation was far more important than petty retorts._

_"I shall not beat around the bush. With great pride I must say that our esteemed Dark Lord ... is indeed back."_

_My breath caught in my stomach and for a minute I thought I was going to vomit. I don't know how my father expected me to take this news, but I was dying to drop the mask and let the horror show. I knew of course that he was back. I believed Hermione who believed Potter. But to hear it for certain from one of his oldest followers was something else. It was a horrible confirmation of sorts._

_I tried to play the part of the obedient son and except for a twitch of acknowledgement, I kept quiet. I didn't quite trust myself to speak now._

_"I don't know if you know the events that transpired at the Department of Mysteries that led to my capture, but suffice to say that I destroyed a coveted object of the Dark Lord and he was not very happy with me." Lucuis's eyes burned of annoyance and betrayal. "He... He.. Has now decided that I am not suitable for my duties as his follower since I am on the radar."_

_I was surprised to hear my father say that out load. To admit to his son that the Dark Lord considered him inefficient was an unheard of thing. But I could sense some resentment too. I decided to stay quiet and let him continue._

_"So.. He has ordered me to find a successor who will carry on my duties and tasks to perfection. I do not have a choice in the matter. And because of the nature of the task, it is only fit that I choose you." Lucius said carefully._

_Now I let my mask drop and my face showed pure repulsion. I couldn't help myself. "You ... You ... Want me to be .. a death eater?" I all but yelled, hoping I was assuming too much._

_His eyes flashed with anger at my raised tone but he chose to ignore it. "Yes. And you shall do as I say."_

_I was vehemently shaking my head by now. This was preposterous. Wasn't it enough that my father and the whole Malfoy and Black families were deeply ingratiated in the Dark arts and were the followers of He who must not be named? I refused to be a part of it._

_"No!" I yelled out. "I shall not. You can't make me. I am just a student. I would never..."_

_"In case you were misled to believe I was asking your opinion, let me make it abundantly clear. This is not an option. I am not asking of you ... I am merely informing you. Judging by your outburst, I figured it would be better to let you know about this in advance where you could get such unseemly reactions out of your system. Then when you are presented with the honour in front of all the people outside, you shall graciously accept the position as if it has been your life's goal."_

_"You ... You must be joking." I fumed._

_"You should know by now that I do no such thing. And I do not want to cajole you into doing this. I am not giving you a choice. Even though the Dark lord has given me a choice. Either you join and complete your task successfully or he kills you and your mother and I, thereby effectively ending the Malfoy line." He said._

_I gasped. No.. That wasn't a choice. It was coercion._

_"You're lying!" I said out loud. My verbal filter seemed out of control._

_"The Lord sees this as fitting punishment for my folly. And although I myself would wish for you to eventually join us, I had promised your mother that I would not force you. But this changes things. Think of this as an opportunity. You should be proud to serve the lord! He is working to restore the honour of the Purebloods and it is our duty to do so." Lucius said fanatically._

_I gaped at him. Here he was, still singing the praises of a madman, who was openly punishing him by putting himself and his family in danger. And all he could do was tell his son how great an honour it was to be asked to join the ranks. If I had disliked my father until now, I positively hated him at this point. He had gotten what he wanted._

_It didn't seem like I had a choice. It was either this or the end of my mother's and my life. My father could go to hell for all I cared._

_"I need some time to think." I said finally, hatred echoing in my words._

_"There's nothing to think about." Lucius said. "You have to do it."_

_"I know that Father!" I sneered while using his name. Some father. "But it's not been a lifelong ambition to be a masked, prejudiced hater and murderer. If you're not giving me a choice, the least you can do is give me some time to process it all." I barked._

_Lucius looked at me like I had slapped him. I was shocked by my words myself. Never had I gathered enough gall to ever speak up against him. I feared that now I may have gone too far. But I couldn't regret it. He was making me do something that I was absolutely loathe to and he needed to know my thoughts about it._

_It looked like he was going to ignore my outburst. "Very well then. You have until dinner to get used to it. After that you shall behave in a manner befitting the Malfoy heir."_

_I glared at him. "What is the task that I am supposed to perform?"_

_Lucius faltered at my sudden query. His hardened eyes of steel held some trepidation for one tenth of a second before he spoke._

_"You have to kill Dumbledore."_

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	46. Chapter 46

**CHAPTER 46.**

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_"Why isn't he speaking to me Blaise?" Hermione pleaded in a whisper._

_Blaise gave her an extremely pitying look and looked around. He was walking his way back to the Slytherin dungeons when Hermione had discreetly run behind him and caught up with him. No one was around. He sighed._

_"Gran.. Hermione ... I really don't know. Why don't you ask him?" Blaise asked wearily._

_"He won't even look at me Blaise. How am I supposed to even question him?" She shot back. "We didn't speak the whole summer after deciding to do so but now that we can meet in school, he won't even look at me."_

_Her eyes had started glistening and the mere fact that she had almost stalked Blaise and sought him to demand an explanation about Draco's behaviour showed that she was desperate. She didn't know what to make out about Blaise knowing her's and Draco's secret so she had ignored it. But now that Draco was behaving like an idiot, she couldn't help but go to the one person who knew about them._

_Blaise looked at her with pity. Of course he knew what was wrong with Draco. He was his closest friend. Also news like his never stayed a secret in the pureblood society that were a part of. He totally understood Draco's reasons for avoiding Hermione. He didn't know what his mission was because that was strictly only between the inner circle death eaters, but he knew he had been inducted as one and that itself was enough for him to want to stay away from Hermione for her own good._

_"Look Hermione, I don't know what to tell you. He's not telling me anything either." Blaise said truthfully. Draco hadn't wanted to speak about it to Blaise but it was obvious to Blaise why he was deliberately shunning her. He hadn't decided yet whether he approved of Draco's thoughtfulness or thought he was being an idiot._

_"Will you ask him please?" Hermione pleaded hopefully. "Just ask him to meet me once. I want to know what I did wrong. Just please; please tell him I'm sorry. Whatever it is."_

_Blaise shut his eyes feeling guilty. Technically he had said no lies but he knew that Draco was not upset with Hermione. Nor had she done anything to antagonize him. But all these weeks of avoiding had caused her to think she had been in the wrong. She looked so distraught and helpless. If he told her, she would be rid of her worry and she could emotionally support Draco as well. But if she didn't do that and ran about telling Potter about him being a death eater then it would all fail. Blaise was unconvinced that Hermione would ever do something like that. But still he had to explore all scenarios. In the end, in spite of Hermione's grief stricken face, he decided that it wasn't his secret to tell and if he did he would be betraying Draco irreversibly._

_"I've already tried speaking with him about you." He said tiredly. Her eyes shone momentarily._

_"Have you? Really?" She asked giddily._

_"I found it odd. I tried asking." He emphasized on the word tried. "But he just won't say anything. He doesn't want to talk to me about it."_

_"Oh." Her face fell. "But can you try again? Please just once?"_

_"Hermione ..."_

_"Please Blaise. You know I care about him. I know something is wrong." She said. "I know we've only just started speaking with each other, but the fact that you called me that day says something doesn't it? We could be friends even. Please help me figure out what's bothering Draco?"_

_Blaise momentarily wondered if Hermione should have been sorted in slytherin for manipulation. She seemed good at it. But one look at her face and her eyes, he realised that she was being genuine. She hadn't wanted to coerce him, but she was desperate. For some contact, for anything that would get Draco to talk to her._

_"Fine." He relented. "I'll try. But I can't promise you anything."_

_Hermione's eyes lit up with partial hope and Blaise started realising for the first time what his mate Draco must have seen in her. She was tirelessly pushy, selfless, caring and loyal to a fault. She accepted him with all his flaws and when he stopped talking to her and ignoring her, instead of feeling snubbed like other girls would, she held her head high and even though others would deem her pleading less than dignified, she wanted to cross the distance and figure out what had gone wrong. And for once she didn't think that Draco could be the reason. She was worried that she had done or said something that had caused him to bottle up. Of course he didn't know if anything like that had actually happened. But he knew the look he saw in Draco's eyes when he saw Hermione from far or near or when he even thought of her._

_It was the same look that she held in her eyes for Draco. And Blaise knew one thing: people that looked at each other that way never let each other go unless it was absolutely necessary. Blaise was sure that Draco's sudden change towards Hermione was nothing to do with her. If anything, he was trying to protect her. Do the right thing. And maybe somewhere down the line, even though he knew that if Hermione learned of this she would scoff and yell at him for doing it but that was only because she was on the other side. The annoyingly courageous and stupidly bold side that was so righteous that they didn't actually ever understand the real depth of danger they were in. Sure, they would be ready to sacrifice their lives for the greater good and weren't into self preservation like the slytherins were; but that's exactly why Draco would have to keep his distance. To prevent her from doing something stupidly rash that could cost her her life._

_"Thank you Blaise." She said earnestly. "You have no idea how much this means to me."_

_Blaise grunted irritated and left her standing in the dungeon corridor. Bloody sunny, optimistic Gryffindor disposition! He almost wanted to run back and knock some sense into her about the imminent danger and reality. But he couldn't. It wasn't his place. He didn't want to interfere in Draco's scheme of things._

_Days went into weeks and although Blaise had tried talking to Draco about Hermione, he was unsuccessful on most occasions. But Hermione continued to pester both Blaise and Draco. Blaise eventually got fed up and demanded he know what the real story was or he would go to Hermione and tell her that Draco was pretending to not talk to her. This made Draco confide in Blaise. Although he didn't exactly tell him what his mission was, Blaise finally knew the reason behind Draco's sudden change. And he was right in his assumptions._

_Now the only catch was to somehow get rid of Hermione and her relentless questions. Draco had resorted to name calling and insults all over again but the stubborn little know-it-all refused to accept that he could be behaving in such a way in earnest. She was convinced there was something going on and she continued in her pursuit to sway Draco from his ridiculous behaviour._

_On top of it all Harry was convinced that Draco was behaving weirdly and was a death eater. Which Hermione found utterly ridiculous. Of course she knew that he hated the pureblood ideology and the mere idea of Voldemort's beliefs but Harry didn't know that and he was hell bent on Draco being a death eater. Granted that he was being rather odd, with respect to Hermione; not in general._

_But the last straw was when Harry attacked Draco with Sectumsempra in the bathroom. Hermione lost her cool and snapped at Harry and refused to speak with him. She was worried sick about Draco and would sneak into the infirmary when everyone was asleep to be with him. Draco of course was sleeping to notice her there but even if he would have seen her, he would have not acknowledged her._

_Ron didn't understand why Hermione was so upset over Harry using the curse on Malfoy of all the people, but he surprisingly understood that she was going through a dull phase; even though he didn't know why. Harry was too busy with the Half blood prince's book and Hermione was upset about something. That just left Ron to support her._

_Hermione was glad to have Ron's support even though she couldn't confide in him about Draco. Surprisingly, Ron and Blaise had taken over Harry and Draco's role. Even though she didn't believe Draco had started hating her, his ignoring of her was getting to her and she was beginning to get worried and jumpy._

_She had realised that maybe he was behaving this way because his father was back and she had even tried telling him to go to Dumbledore for help. But he had just insulted her again and left._

_Christmas came and went and Lucius was extremely angry with Draco for the lack of progress in his mission. He decided that he needed some leverage to speed up his work. On magically searching his room, he found the two way diary. It was an old Malfoy diary and thus it was easy for him to unlock it._

_The contents of the diary shocked him. And there wasn't much that could raise Lucius Malfoy's eyebrows. But the words exchanged between his son, his own son, his blood and heir and the filthy mudblood were enough to shock his existence and send his blood boiling._

_He slammed the diary shut and summoned for his son from Hogwarts. He was staying there to complete his mission but this was important. Lucius had to meet his son and confront him._

_"You called Father?" Draco said as soon as he entered his father's library._

_Lucius swirled his chair to face him. "I heard of another failed attempt on your part Draco." He said caustically._

_Draco gulped. The poisoned mead that he had half-heartedly planted for Dumbledore had somehow reached the Weasel and he was currently in the hospital because of that. One more reason for him to be away from Hermione. He didn't deserve her. He had almost killed one of her best friends and if she ever came to know that, she would stop following him around and trying to get him to speak with her. She was better off without him._

_He had promised himself that he would place distance between them. For her safety. He wasn't the person she expected him to be nor could he ever become one. The person she had expressed her love to, wasn't the same Draco Malfoy anymore. Now he was Draco Malfoy, death eater; ordered to kill the greatest wizard of the time. And Hermione could never love someone like that._

_"Father I ..." Draco started._

_"Enough." Lucius roared. "I am tired of your excuses Draco. The Dark Lord hasn't shown any impatience yet, but that is because he is expecting you to fail. But I, on the other hand, expect you to fulfil your commitment. And I won't stop at anything."_

_Draco didn't wish to, but something compelled him to look at his father's eyes as he said this. He saw complete seriousness and a deadly madness in them._

_"I leave you no choice son. Your attempts on Dumbledore's life are laughable. Perhaps I should raise the stakes for you to start putting some more effort into your task." Lucius said. "Perhaps, let's say that every time you fail, I will play a little game of my own. A game on the life of a certain little mudblood we know. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"_

_Draco's eyes widened and all pretence left him as he unbelievingly looked at the monster that stood before him._

_Lucius stood idly by, playing with Draco's diary in his hands, the mad glint still in his eye._

_"Father..." Draco's voice trembled._

_"I don't want to hear of it. You have heard what I had to say. The rest is up to you." Lucius said as he left his library and his son._

_Draco reached Hogwarts and made his way towards a door he never thought he would never knock on._

_"Aah Mr. Malfoy. Welcome. Finally. I was beginning to wonder if you were coming at all."_

_"You ... You knew I'd come?" Draco asked surprised._

_"I had an inkling, yes." He said. "And let me tell you that I'm glad you're here."_

_"I need help." Draco blurted out._

_"We all do, Mr. Malfoy. We all do." He said. "And at Hogwarts, help is always given to those who deserve it."_

_"I don't deserve it." Draco said convinced. "But I can't do this ... She needs to be kept safe."_

_Professor Dumbledore turned around, offering him a lemon drop, motioned for him to sit down. "Tell me everything."_

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**I'll try to put up the next one as soon as I can.**

**Till then, happy reading!**

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	47. Chapter 47

**Thanking;**

**Vale of Tears**  
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**CHAPTER 47.**

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She woke up with a start. Her neck angled precariously, one arm under her head. It was good that her head lolled because now that she jerked up, she realised that she had lost sensation in her fingers.

She winced and quickly started wringing her fingers and shaking her hand to get the blood flowing again. Once they started tingling and she could see the faint rose colour return to them, she sighed and yawned.

Looking around, she realised that she had barely even cleaned around when she fell asleep. All the furniture was still in its place. Everything looked the same except it all had white sheets over it. Molly must have come and covered all the furniture. There wasn't much to clean actually. Hermione had always preferred more space and less furniture in her home. There was slight dust all over but definitely the place had been cleaned at least a fortnight ago.

Hermione smiled despite herself. Thank Merlin for Molly Weasley and her cleaning obsessions. She wondered how the house would look with over a year's dust caked on it.

Hermione suddenly felt a surge of warmth and gratitude towards the woman who was actually her mother for all intents and purposes. Molly had always loved her like a daughter and was overjoyed when Hermione had finally become a Weasley. In spite of her love for grand-children, she had sided Hermione and warned Ron that he was never to pressure her into having kids unless she was ready.

Hermione hadn't even said goodbye to her before leaving. She couldn't bear to face her. She knew that if she had met her then her resolve to leave would crumble and she would forever want to be under the loving care of her mother-in-law.

She wondered what to do now that she was back in the country. It had been 18 months since she had stepped foot into her native country. Everything had changed and yet was still the same.

Should she meet Molly and the rest of the Weasley's ? And what about Harry? And Ginny ? Oh Lord! She panicked. She had left Harry and Ginny all alone. She had come back and left them there. No doubt they would be frantically looking for her. They must have even contacted her parents by now. But she was sure that they would never guess that she had come back. As far as hiding options went, she knew she was safe until she herself decided to surface.

But what was she running away from this time ? She had, just up until a moment ago considered meeting the Weasley's. A year and a half ago, Hermione wouldn't even entertain that thought. A lot had changed in her since then. She had changed. And that change was due to the person that she was running away from.

But now that she had calmed down a fair bit and old memories of her life had unceremoniously claimed her thoughts, she began to wonder what it was that she really was running away from? It wasn't the Weasley's anymore; that was sure. It wasn't even Harry or Ginny.

She had thought that she was running from Draco, but in truth, now even that didn't make sense. Clearly, she was running away from any confrontation that was bound to happen. And she didn't even know why. Ever since she could remember, she had wanted Draco to acknowledge in any way that he wanted her. Or at least desired her.

Until Ron came into the picture.

Their entire 6th year, when Draco had been busy trying to shun Hermione, Ron had subconsciously picked up on Hermione's pain and something had stirred within him. He had always held a soft spot for the bushy haired, brilliant witch and watching her disintegrate internally had created an innate protectiveness in him.

He knew that there was nothing tangible about his suspicions or her condition. Even if there was, she wouldn't tell him. Ever. It wasn't because she didn't trust him, Ron understood that. It was only because it was something that Hermione wanted to ignore.

Although it bothered Ron that he couldn't completely help her and that she wouldn't admit what was wrong; but he decided that whatever it was, he would be her rock. If something was weakening her, he would be her strength. Small gestures, little things, no questions and unconditional support; Ron found himself giving all of these to her. Anyone who knew Ron Weasley well would be shocked. Perhaps, even doubt if this person was an imposter. But in truth, he was still Ron. But a Ron in love. Much later, during the horcrux hunt, when the locket started torturing him, he realised that what he felt for Hermione was love. It was love all along. Only he hadn't seen it till now.

He was tormented by doubts about Harry and Hermione when he wore the locket. But he used immense self control to ignore it all. When he removed it, it felt like a boulder being lifted. And all the feelings of love intensified and returned magnified. No. He wouldn't ever be threatened by Harry. Even though he hadn't expressed his feelings to her, he was sure that she felt something for him in ways very different from what she felt for Harry.

And Ron wasn't blind. He had seen the way Harry and Ginny looked at each other. It was an unspoken topic but still very obvious. Harry and Ginny weren't over. Not yet. So he pushed his demons deep into his mind and continued to be her support throughout the year. She was still hurting and very guarded about what had gone wrong in the 6th year, but at least for the most part she was still the same. His Hermione.

Hermione smiled at her recollection of Ron. Who would have ever known that the clueless, ill tempered, oblivious red headed boy would end up developing much more of an emotional range than that of a tea-spoon? And it had all started with his feelings for her.

Of course Hermione wasn't blind either. She had noticed how much Ron supported her through it all. All without any questions. He had turned to become her silent pillar. And even though she was slightly ashamed of it, every time her mind wandered to Draco, she would cover up the hurt and pain by finding solace or distraction in Ron.

By the time the war was over, Hermione had come to greatly depend emotionally on him and in spite of herself, she found that she was slowly starting to develop or rather at least reciprocate his feelings.

The worst ever confrontation in her life had been at Malfoy Manor. When Bellatrix had tortured her to the brink of insanity.  
>Not only was it a physical onslaught on her but also a mental one. She wondered how she ever recovered from that night.<p>

Seeing Draco there for the first time in months had been surreal. All voices stopped and time stood still. Bellatrix had her insane gaze all over them and she was urging Draco to recognize Harry. Greyback and the other snatchers stood proudly while Narcissa held a nauseated expression. But all this was seen through the corner of her eyes. Her vision contained only Draco.

Draco, who looked paler than ever. Eyes unfeeling, unsaying and hard but still they spoke volumes to her. She could hear them shouting. He didn't seem to leave her gaze for what seemed like eons. He refused to recognize Harry and Ron and for that she was grateful. Her Draco was there somewhere. He was still there.

She didn't know how to feel. Relieved that he was alive or betrayed that he actually was what her friends had been trying to show her all along. Her eyes and logic chose the latter but his eyes said something else. She barely registered what was happening around her when she felt a piercing agony rip through her.

For the first time since she had come to the Manor, Draco faded from her vision and blackness overtook. She realised that she was still feeling. She was still awake. The blackness wasn't unconsciousness but was a result of her eyes closing in pain. She wished she would pass out. Because what she was feeling right now couldn't possibly be endured by a human in their senses.

Her shock of seeing Draco slowly faded as her body started responding to the Cruciatus. Her ears filled with her own screams and her palpitations also pounded into her ears. Her blood sizzled in her ears too and soon she thought that her eardrums would burst. Her lungs felt constricted as she shouted and screamed and soon there was no more air to make noise. But she continued hearing screams. At a point she wasn't even sure if it was her screaming.

All vision, thought and logic left her. There was nothing but nothingness. She was tethered to reality by an invisible cord and she felt herself on the brink of losing it all. Something even as natural as breathing was taking so much effort that she couldn't remember how to do it. When suddenly it stopped. It stopped.

She didn't know what stopped but everything stopped. Everything, all at once. The first thing she realised that had stopped was the screaming. Her ears weren't overloaded with her own screams. Her heart was beating, albeit barely and it wasn't strong enough to send pulses to her ears. So she stopped hearing that as well. She was blank. She wasn't thinking anything either. But considering she had just started breathing on her own again, thinking was the last thing she was worried about.

But what hit her the most was that the torture had stopped. The burning within her veins, the pain, the mind numbing agony; all gone.

Encouraged to slowly open her eyes again, the first thing she saw were the insanity filled eyes of her torturer. Bellatrix was looking at her like a puzzle. Crazed eyes full of surprise and disgust. And mostly anger. Pure, unbridled anger.  
>She held a dagger in her hand, the tip of which was drenched in blood.<p>

Looking down, Hermione almost gagged. It was her blood. The tip was covered by her blood. And the same tip had been had been used to carve out the term mudblood into her flesh. When she had done it, Hermione couldn't say. Amidst all the pain, the pain of the knife searing through her flesh had been no different.

But what had been different, was the feeling when the pain had stopped. Her knife and wand, both had been continued to point at her but she felt nothing. She felt nothing but pure anger in Bellatrix's eyes, presumably from the lack of reaction from Hermione to her torture curse.

Hermione barely registered anything when suddenly there was a flurry of activity and loud noises that signalled Harry and Ron's freedom and the arrival of Dobby. Her vision was clouding again but not before Dobby pulled her hand and put it into Harry's and apparated them away to Shell cottage.

And the last thing she saw with her blurry, questionable vision was a pale 17 year old boy whose eyes were dry but were crying with invisible tears that were seen only by her. But she also saw relief in them as she twisted away into nothingness and lost all coherent thought.

She didn't wake up for two days. Ron didn't leave her side for once. When she woke, her eyes only saw the same pale face that seemed to bid her farewell. She lost consciousness again. Fleur, who was studying to be a Healer, found these as classic signs of the side effects of the cruciatus. But the fact that she had woken before slipping again seemed to give everybody some hope. It was a good sign. Fleur had revealed that a very high intensity curse had been used on her and the more she stayed unconscious the better it was for her mind to recover.

Her body would eventually recover with forced rest, but her mind would stabilise only if she was in a state of slight coma.

And finally when she awoke after 4 and a half agonising days, Fleur carefully examined her and deemed her to be fine. Ron cried that day. He cried into her shoulder for hours before telling her he loved her.

She hadn't spoken anything. She cried too. She cried for the pale face she remembered last and cried for Dobby who had died saving them. She cried for things she didn't understand. But mostly, she cried because even though she wanted to, she couldn't say 'I love you' back to the boy who hadn't left her side since she had needed someone, because every time she readied herself to say the words that she meant to, and Merlin knew she meant them; the same pale face of Draco Malfoy, helpless in his Manor but relieved with a passion that Hermione was escaping, kept coming into her mind.

And so she kept quiet. For days after she woke. Fleur said it was normal. Shock had different ways of manifesting. And in her case it was mutism. Only, Hermione knew it wasn't.

The silence allowed her to gauge her battles. The visit to the manor had left her battered and bruised. Not only physically but also mentally. She found herself slowly recovering from the physical pain. But the pain of seeing Draco there was still fresh. She had caught the look of utmost horror on his chiselled face when Bellatrix had uttered the curse. But soon her vision had left her. But his horror struck face continued to haunt her.

He had once taken the curse himself to save her. Seeing her being subjected to the very same thing he had wanted to protect her from must have been crushing.

But was it? He was amongst death eaters now. What if they had brainwashed him? Or worse, imperiused him? No. He didn't look any different. He still looked like the Draco she had grown to care about and love. But was he the same ?

When she had suddenly stopped feeling the pain, the disbelief in Bellatrix's eyes had caused her to believe that she hadn't stopped the torturing. But Hermione had stopped feeling it. She didn't know what it was but deep down she knew or rather hoped that Draco was protecting her somehow.

Months later, she learned that Draco indeed had stopped the pain. Summoning up all his willpower and anguish and anger, he had cast a wandless, non verbal protego in her direction at the same time that he had summoned Dobby to save them all.

She had known in her heart that he would save her and that he had been the cause of the stoppage of her pain. But Ron was the one who healed her. And he was the one who held her heart now.

Anyone who knew Hermione Granger would know that, that night at Malfoy Manor was the worst night of her life. The nightmare of her life. But no one knew that Bella's curse had nothing to do with it. Choosing one between two had almost broken her in half. And that was why it was the worst night of her life.

Even after the war was over and all things had been made clear, Draco was freed of all charges on account of being a double agent like Snape; Hermione and Draco had cleared the air. Tears were shed and apologies were made. Pleas were heard and promises made again. But never was the unsaid, untouched topic between them broached again.

Their years of silence had immediately been filled again and Hermione helped Draco become whole again. Hermione was already whole thanks to Ron and what existed for the first time between Draco and Hermione was pure, platonic friendship. It was all very unsaid, but very much there.

It was as if there never had been a crack before and Draco and Hermione resumed their friendship. Only this time, Hermione was with Ron and Draco was genuinely happy that she had found someone worthy. Although he loathed to consider the Weasel more worthy that him, but that was the truth. It hurt, it hurt that her happiness also brought him sorrow. But it had been his choice. He had distanced himself from her in the hopes that she would find someone more suitable. More safe. And deep down he knew, even before Hermione or Ron knew that Ron would be the one.

So he left them alone. He had dreamed and fantasised of ways in which he would return her feelings and her declaration of love to him. But that's all that it would be now. Dreams. Never turning into reality. For her good, he never said those words back to her. The ones she had been longing to hear. For she belonged to someone else now and his words would be nothing but a caustic memory. Unwanted even.

But it was easy for Ron and it was easy for Draco. They both knew whom they loved and acted accordingly. Hermione was in purgatory. She knew she loved them both. She really did. And she never stopped loving Draco. Even when she loved Ron, she had loved Draco. The calm and collected, brightest witch of her age; Hermione Granger was for once clueless about the dilemma in her life.

She knew choosing Ron would be the right thing. Well, not as right as choosing neither. But she couldn't leave Ron. He loved her and would be devastated if she left. Even if she had left Ron, she would never go back to Draco. That much was certain. Though giving up Draco had seemed easier because time had done its job, letting go of Ron seemed impossible. She did love him. And what disgusted her more was that she envisaged being married to him and having his family.

Most days she hated herself for being in love with two people. And both those people were an important part of her life. Although no one knew about Draco's standing in her life yet, she was still guilty for being friends with him.

Maybe Draco had sensed this. He had probably realised that as long as he was in the picture, Hermione could never be truly happy with Ron. But it hit him hard when she decided to marry him. He knew it was an eventuality. But the certainty of it shook him. What better time to exit gracefully from her life than now? He certainly couldn't sit and watch her become someone else's. And she didn't deserve to see him as she wedded another person.

So for her sake as well as his, he accepted the training in Japan. He was leaving, but he planned on doing it right this time. No abrupt departure from her life. No angst or doubts. They would always be friends. But from afar. He didn't think he could handle her as being Mrs. Ronald Weasley. She would always remain Hermione Granger to him.

So he left.

And then Ron left. Forever.

And she was all alone again. But then Draco had come back. But he had come back as the person he was when he had left. As a friend. But then she had gone and spoilt it all in one reckless action.

She still loved him. That much was true. But another truth was that what had happened wouldn't ever happen if Ron had been there. It made her feel that she had used Draco. That Draco was second fiddle. And it would make her feel worst if Draco thought the same.

If she went back to Draco now it would look like she had no choice, that's why she was going to him. But this time, she wouldn't make the same folly.

Instead of choosing, she would refrain from choosing. Yes. Her choice would be to choose nothing.

She didn't deserve Draco. Draco didn't deserve to be second fiddle. And this time she would make things right. She would stay alone. But she would apologise. For everything. Said and unsaid. It was time to say all the things that had been left unsaid.

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	48. Chapter 48

**Thank you to;**

**allisonconnor**  
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**For leaving me such wonderful and encouraging comments !**

**All the feedback means a lot to me as a writer coz let's face it; it's the readers that make the writer!**

**And as usual, I'm going to go all excited about this story touching 600+ reviews! I am thrilled! Thank you all so very much!**

**Now although this story is coming to an end, I'll try my level best to make it worth your time! (Translates into lotsa dramione fluff!) Review and let me know what type of rating you are comfortable with.**

**Coz I've only ever done a "T". And I'm kind of word shy when it comes to "M". But I shall take into consideration what you guys want and also my literary limitations and dish something out for you!**

**Ok back to the chapter then!**

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**CHAPTER 48.**

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"This is preposterous!" Ginny whined. "Where could she have gone? We've contacted almost every wizarding hospital by floo and the ministry says they've not had any requests for international travel. Where is she?"

Harry rubbed his eyes through his glasses tiredly, a habit he had acquired since his childhood days even before Hermione had magically repaired his glasses. "Short of searching for her by foot everywhere, we've done everything possible. She's not been to any of the places we imagined she would go to. And I think Malfoy has almost resorted to look for her manually, showing her photographs to random muggles."

"She hasn't touched any of her money. Her banks guarantee that. She must have had spare galleons for that." Katherine offered.

There was silence. Their conversations were usually punctuated by deafening silence which seemed to be better than words of dismay.

"Lunch is ready everyone. Let's eat something and then perhaps we will be better suited to deal with this." Ginny said as she placed the oven tray on Hermione's little dining table. Removing her mitts, she went over to where Harry was sitting, glasses still lopsided, with a faraway look in his eyes.

She re-adjusted his glasses so that they were aligned perfectly and cupped his face gently and kissed him soundly. At first he just stayed still but Ginny didn't relent. She bit his lower lip ever so slightly knowing fully well that he found that irresistible.

Harry growled ferally deep in his throat and snaked his hand into her hair and pulled his pregnant wife flush against him into his lap. Pleased at finally getting a response, Ginny smiled against his mouth and her pace slowed to that of completion. As she kissed him chastely on the lips for one last time, his eyes searched hers pleadingly and she gave him a wan smile. He shut his eyes again and leaned his forehead against hers.

"Ahem." Katherine cleared her throat, her face reddening rather funnily.

Ginny turned towards the other witch in the kitchen and laughed at her embarrassment.

"I thought I should remind you that the food's getting cold." Katherine said rather awkwardly.

"And here I thought it was hot enough." Ginny smirked and winked at the younger witch, which caused her to blush even more.

Harry smiled at his wife. Even in times as such, she was able to keep herself strong for everyone. For himself, for Malfoy. He didn't know how or when it had happened but Malfoy had started relying on Ginny's approval and truly considered her a friend.

And Ginny felt something protective towards him too. And if Malfoy was good enough for Ginny to be cheering him up then Malfoy was good enough for him. He was willing to bypass all the animosity held between them. Two of the most important women in his life swore by Malfoy, surely he could too.

It wasn't like Ginny was taking Hermione's departure easily. She may have seemed strong but the rather abrupt runaway act had left her worried and upset. She had just gotten her best friend back after years, only for her to be gone again. She wouldn't ever say it because she wanted to be strong for Harry and Draco but there were times when she wanted to sulk and cry and be unresponsive and just lay like that all day, waiting for Hermione to miraculously realise her folly and turn up.

But no. Harry and Draco seemed to be doing enough of that already. So she had to be strong. She had to make sure they ate and keep their spirits high. Boys were rather extreme that way. Either they showed a great deal of emotion or they shut off completely. Happiness would border on euphoria and sadness would reach depression. She had to keep going and restore the normalcy as much as she could. Her tantrums and breakdowns could wait until they found Hermione. Oh how she would yell at her once they found her! Hermione Granger would hope she had remained hidden! That witch was going to get an earful!

But until then, she was busy making sure that they boys didn't run out of options to look into and that they ate on time. As a Weasley, she knew the immense importance of a full stomach and she wasn't going to let Harry and Draco go about hungry.

"Hot enough to sizzle." Matt said as he came over and hugged Katherine from behind and kissed her ear.

Katherine swatted his arm at his attempt to recreate the previous scene and Matt pouted.

Ginny laughed again although it didn't reach her eyes. "Where's Draco?" She asked, scanning the room.

"He said he needed some air." Matt replied as he stole a fresh piece of bread from the tray. "Took off with his broom."

Ginny sighed. "I think we've exhausted all our options." She said grudgingly.

"I've sent out her photos to all my Quidditch pals all over the world. In case they happen to notice her." Matt offered.

"It's no use." Harry said ultimately. "We couldn't find her until she wrote to us. She's a damn good recluse. We won't find her till she wants us to find her."

"But we have to try. You never know! Look how Draco found her!" Katherine said vehemently.

"I know sweetie, I know." Ginny calmed the younger witch. "But that was completely a stroke of luck. Or even destiny if one may say so. But miracles like that don't happen all the time."

"But we can't just give up." Katherine repeated. "We have to keep looking."

"Of course we won't give up. We never really gave up all the while before we found her either." Ginny said. "Our search had dwindled a bit, but we never gave up. We always kept our eyes and ears open in the hope of catching some clue."

"I think Draco may have to take another bludger to the head for Hermione to come out of her bill." Matt joked.

"Matt!" Katherine admonished him.

Ginny laughed. "No it's true. Draco would be ready to do that in a heartbeat if it meant meeting Hermione."

"You know," Matt continued as he buttered his bread and took a bite, "I had known of Hermione long before I even met her."

Ginny swallowed her pumpkin juice and asked, "Draco spoke about her?"

"All the bloody time." Matt said shaking his head. "I mean, he never spoke about her directly as a topic. No. Draco isn't the one to have heart to hearts. But in conversations Hermione would come up often. Besides, he used to spend hours every other day writing lengthy letters to her. Once, I heard a girl slam his room door and retreat in fury after a date he had had with her."

Ginny raised her eyebrows curiously.

"Draco was too disoriented and I was only entering our apartment from a night out. After much prodding he told me, and I'm sure he told me this only because he was drunk, that he umm... He called out Hermione's name instead of um... He didn't remember that girls name even later." Matt said, snickering.

Katherine narrowed her eyes at Matt and looked at him warningly. He just shrugged. Ginny's eyes were wide and Harry looked slightly uncomfortable.

Taking Katherine's hand in his gently, matt started rubbing his thumb over her thumb. This seemed to calm her down a bit. "What I'm trying to say is, Draco has always loved Hermione. It's always Hermione this and Hermione that. And Draco is a private person. He doesn't share much. In over 2 years of us being together in the same team, I can say for sure that Draco is my best mate and vice versa but never has he told me about Hermione on his own. But the glimpses I got from time to time were enough for me to know that no girl he dated would be the one for him as long as this Hermione would be in the picture."

Harry just stared at Matt. He was thinking about what had just been said. It was true that Hermione had loved Draco even before she had started loving Ron. And from what Ginny had said, Draco had loved Hermione ever since Hogwarts. What the bloody hell had been the problem?

They were friends, agreed. But Harry and Malfoy were enemies. Harry could imagine Hermione being upset over that, but that wouldn't be a cause to stop oneself from loving the person you loved.

What had stopped Draco from telling her? Why was Hermione doubtful of Draco's feelings for her?

Hell, even he could say, with a blindfold on that Malfoy loved Hermione like a madman; and he could be rather thick at times.

Harry didn't care what he had to do, but he would try his level best to find Hermione. And when he did, the first thing he'd tell her was about Malfoy's feelings. He didn't care that it wasn't his place to say. Malfoy had failed to say so last time and this time he wasn't taking any chances.

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okay.. so I know this was truly a filler of sorts.. but frankly i wanted to show all sides of the story.. and i would have added more, included draco also but i'm in the midst of a family wedding.. and i've taken some self time off to write.. the chaos and family overload is driving me crazy !

Soon, we shall arrive at the end.. draco will meet hermione!


	49. Chapter 49

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**For the love!**

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**CHAPTER 49.**

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Molly Weasley clutched her heart with her right hand as her left held the door with all her might lest she fell.  
>Tears streamed through her eyes along well formed tear stain paths. She soon steadied herself and managed to move her arms to envelope the woman standing at her door.<p>

Hermione had wet eyes the moment Molly had seen her. And now, being embraced by the mother figure she couldn't help but think that coming here was a good decision.

"Don't you dare disappear on us ever again Hermione. Gave us the fright of our lives. Do you know how worried we were?" She scolded her like she did her children. "Oh dear but just look at you. Looks like you never fed yourself while you were away. Come along dear, I've just baked some sweet bread. This is why you shouldn't have gone away."

Hermione laughed weakly and let her mother-in-law lead her by the hand toward the kitchen.

Hermione looked around happily in the home she practically grew up in. She absolutely loved the kitchen in the Burrow. It was a happy place and definitely had been Ron's favourite place too.

Over the years, the children had moved out and so the Burrow was unusually quiet, but come Sundays, Molly had everyone over and it was like the old times again. Except for Ron. Hermione had been sent invitations for Sunday meals very often. But as usual, she stayed hidden. She had really missed this place.

With fresh tears in her eyes, she swept her gaze and it finally landed on Molly. She smiled weakly and hugged her again but this time she soon burst into tears.

Molly patted her back lovingly and whispered soothing words in her ears. "Sshh love. It's not right that you react this way after so long. Ron would've hated to see you this way because of him."

Hermione nodded against Molly's shoulder. "I can't tell you how glad I am that you are back." Molly said. "Don't go running away again?" She almost pleaded.

Hermione smiled. "I cleaned all the furniture and set up the house yesterday. I don't think I'm going anywhere after doing all that work."

Molly laughed.

"Thank you." Hermione said earnestly. "For keeping my house. I know you must be going there regularly."

"I had to keep it in good shape for you. I knew you'd return soon." Molly said confidently.

"I'm here for good now. No more running away." Hermione said firmly.

"That's like the Hermione I know." Molly smiled. "Now how about some lunch?"

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"Harry!" Ginny yelled. "Harry!"

"Sweet Salazar woman!" Draco entered the living room looking ghastly with barely a few hours of sleep. "Quit yelling."

Ginny grinned. Although her motive behind yelling for Harry was actually to call him, she was quite glad that it served a double purpose. She had finally managed to get a reaction from Draco. Ever since Hermione had left, he had retreated into a shell. In spite of many reassurances from her and some from Harry, he believed that he was responsible for her running away which had caused all the progress he had had with her to go to waste.

He used to leave the flat for hours together, in search for her and return late at night. Harry and Ginny barely saw him. He was probably avoiding them. He hated the pitiful looks he got from them. And so, running away like Hermione had seemed quite inviting.

"Oh when you find out what I know you'll be yelling your voice box out too." Ginny smirked.

Draco grunted in response, clearly not interested as he operated the coffee maker.

"Fine." Ginny pouted. "Be that way. Maybe I should skip telling you and just find Harry to share my news with."

"By all means." Draco said gruffly as he downed the bitter liquid in one large swallow.

"Harry!" She yelled again.

"Merlin Gin. Give a bloke some time off." Harry said as he entered the living room in his towel, his raven coloured hair dripping on the carpet.

"Potter! You're dripping on my carpet." Draco drawled.

"You heard the woman." Harry shot back. "A few drops of water on your carpet are better than 2 torn eardrums."

"As sexy as you look in a towel dear husband, just for that snarky comment I'm not going to reward you." Ginny pouted. "It's amazing how you both hear me yelling but none of you want to ask me what it's all about. Maybe I'll just go find Katherine."

Harry sighed as Draco got up to retreat into his room again and Ginny made a big show of opening a letter from her pocket and reading it.

"What's that?" Harry asked curiously.

"Why? A letter of course." Ginny said.

"I can see that. Who is it from?" Harry persisted.

"Maybe it's a letter that tells us about someone we're looking for." Ginny played around.

Draco stopped in his tracks the moment she said that. He turned around and looked at Ginny. Harry was looking at her too and with 4 eyes boring holes into her, she retreated a few steps and held the letter in her hand a little higher.

"It's mum. Hermione's back." Ginny said.

"Back?" Draco asked dryly.

"Yes. Back." Ginny said. "The reason we can't find her anywhere else is because she's returned home."

Harry slapped his right hand onto his forehead. "How stupid of us. We checked almost everywhere and never bothered to check the one place Hermione was sure we wouldn't."

"She's back home?" Draco repeated as if he was having a hard time registering that. "She went back to England? "

"How did she do that?" Harry mused. "We were tracking all international forms of travel."

"But we expected her to go someplace new. That's when any movement on her part would have alerted us." Draco explained. "But since came from England, she would have already had the permit to go back and so we never came to know."

"No wonder." Ginny said. "Okay let's not waste any more time then. Let's get going. We need to see her."

Harry and Ginny got up to go pack but Draco stood there, transfixed.

"Draco?" Ginny placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come. Let's go home."

"Home?" Draco scoffed. "That place hasn't been home in a long time Ginny."

"But it is now." Ginny said quietly. "She's back. And you both need to resolve your issues."

"She didn't want to resolve anything." Draco said. "That's why she ran away."

"But she went and met mum." Ginny retorted back. "She would have known that mum would tell me for sure that Hermione visited. And I would tell you. If she wanted to stay away, she would have."

"She's not running away from you or her old life anymore Ginny." Draco said. "It's me she's avoiding."

"So you won't come back?" Ginny asked.

Draco shook his head. "I'll come. But she said she's going for good. I don't think she wants to see Me."

"We'll see about that." Ginny said. "Get your stuff. We need to leave today."

"I'm not sure." Draco replied. "I think I need a few days..."

"Draco Malfoy! I'll be damned if I don't take you back with me today." Ginny bellowed. "I am done with all the childish behaviour around here. First Hermione runs away and you make a mess of yourself trying to look for her. Now that we've found her, you say you need more time? Bull shit! I can't risk you running away to some godforsaken place too. You're coming with us today and it's final. "Ginny puffed.

Just then Harry emerged from one of the rooms. "What's final? Don't get so excited Ginny love, you're panting. Okay I just sent an owl to the travel ministry. Our portkey is being set up as we speak. We should be expected to leave within a couple of hours."

"See? Now it's all done. You have to come." Ginny said, looking pointedly at Draco.

Harry looked at Ginny and Draco quizzically. "Of course he has to come. Why would you assume otherwise?"

Ginny glared at Draco and Draco sighed and reluctantly walked to his room and shut his door.

Harry raised his eyebrows at his wife but she just shook her head and retrieved her wand from the dining table and set up anti apparition and locator wards around the flat.

"Ginny love? What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Just making sure Draco doesn't disappear on us before we take him to Hermione." Ginny replied.

Harry looked confused but let it be. Whatever it was, he was sure that Ginny could handle Malfoy.

Ginny went about packing all her things and she even packed some of Hermione's things that she thought was needed. Then she went to meet Katherine to tell her about the news. Katherine was extremely relieved to know that they had found Hermione but was sad that she was losing her mentor. Ginny gave her her address and Katherine promised to visit once things between Draco and Hermione settled.

By the time Ginny returned home, the portkey had been sent and there were only 10 minutes remaining before it got activated.

"Blimey Gin. I thought you'd never return." Harry said nervously. "Malfoy's just not coming out of his room. I tried telling him that the portkey will be set soon but he won't say anything."

"Oh he'll come with us all right. Don't worry." Ginny assured him.

Harry shrunk the entire luggage and was munching on a muffin when Draco walked out of his room. He had showered and his unkempt beard had gone. He was clean shaven again and he looked healthier than he had in days.

"Finally." Harry muttered.

"Draco, good. You're in time. I trust you've packed and shrunken your luggage?"Ginny asked. "I spoke to the landlord and I've settled everything for both the flats. Come now, we barely have any time."

Draco look dazed as Ginny pulled his arm and the three of them held the umbrella that was serving as the portkey. The handle of the umbrella started glowing, signalling that the travel would commence in a minute.

Ginny clutched Draco's arm tightly with one hand and held Harry's hand in the other. Soon a strong wind blew and the three of them left the flat in a twirly haze of compressed air and reached another place that Draco did not recognize. It looked like a kitchen. He presumed it was the Potter's home.

Harry helped Ginny on her legs and proceeded to get a chair for her. Draco's head was swimming slightly too from the travel. He looked around the kitchen. It was a typical kitchen, warm and cosy. Everything his home wasn't while growing up.

"Umm." Harry said. "We thought we could all come here. This is our house. You're welcome to stay here for as long as you like."

"Yes Draco." Ginny piped. "You can stay here. I know you've not been here in long."  
>Draco looked around and then sat down on a dining chair next to Ginny. "I have a house here Ginny." He said.<p>

"I know." Ginny replied. "But Merlin knows what condition it may be in. You've not lived here in three years. Besides, we would love to have you here."

"But Ginny... It's hardly needed." Draco said.

"Please Draco?" Ginny pleaded. "Till you speak to Hermione. Then you're free to make a decision about where you want to live."

"Fine." Draco gave in. "But I'm not sure about speaking to her. I'll stay here till my house is made liveable."

"We'll see about that." Ginny said determinedly. "Now! Who would like some tea?"

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**I know, I know... I cant even begin to say how mad things have been..**

**I'm trying to update this story as soon as i can!**

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	50. Chapter 50

**Thanking;**

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**CHAPTER 50.**

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"What the hell Hermione?" Ginny bellowed as she slammed the kitchen door shut after her. "How could you? We were worried sick."

Hermione stopped chopping her onions and smiled. "You got here rather quickly. Molly hasn't lost her touch I see."

"You could have stayed hidden Hermione. Why the change in heart?" Ginny quizzed, narrowing her eyes.

Hermione wiped her hands against the dish towel and leaned her back against the counter. "I'm tired of running Ginny. This is my home. I had to come back some time. I thought you wanted me to come back home."

Ginny circled and pulled a chair to sit. Hermione conjured a glass and poured her some water. "Of course I want you here love. I couldn't be happier. But the circumstances were less than savoury. You ran away again. Harry was beside himself. You know how he gets."

Hermione sat next to Ginny and hugged her. "I'm sorry. I really am. I promise I didn't want you and Harry to go through this especially since you were my guests."

"And Draco?" Ginny asked. "What about him? He's been distraught since the day you left. You really do owe him an explanation Hermione."

Hermione stiffened slightly at the mention of Draco's name. "Has he.. Has he come too?"

"Yes of course he has. What did you expect? We'd leave him there?" Ginny chided Hermione. "He went mad looking for you Hermione. He's blaming himself ever since he woke up alone in that bed of his."

Hermione's face turned pink. "So you .. Umm.. Know." She said.

"It wasn't difficult to guess after we searched his flat for you." Ginny said dryly.

Hermione dragged her hands over her face. She looked a mixture of embarrassed and guilty. "Gin.." She said without even opening her eyes. "Ginny I ... Don't know how it happened. I mean.. "

"It's ok Hermione." Ginny stood up and placed her hands on the brunette's shoulders. "You don't have to be ashamed or you don't owe anyone an explanation over your actions. You're an adult and a very responsible one at that. What you do shouldn't be anyone's business."

Hermione opened her eyes finally. They were full of gratitude and semi relief. "Thanks Ginny. It means a lot coming from you. I know I'm not supposed to feel like I did anything wrong but it's just that internally I feel so damn guilty. Like it's so wrong. So bloody wrong."

Ginny entwined her fingers with Hermione's. "You're an extremely thoughtful person Hermione. And I know you hold morals in very high regard. But it really doesn't apply here." Ginny explained. "You aren't answerable to anyone except yourself. And maybe Draco. You did leave him after all. The least you could do is to answer his questions. Godric knows he deserves to know."

Hermione sighed loudly. She released her hand from Ginny's comforting touch and got up to stand. She started chopping the onions again. "It's partly morals. But Ginny ... I don't know... I really don't. It was for the best you know. It wasn't right on my part."

"I think that's a decision that you can't make alone Mione." Ginny said seriously.

"That's just it Ginny. He won't agree with me. I know it." Hermione retaliated.

"Only because he would disagree, you ran away?" Ginny asked with betrayal in her voice.

Hermione placed the onions in a saucepan and the loud hiss of sauté could be heard as she added the spices. "I'm sorry Ginny. I didn't mean to leave you alone. You know that. I wouldn't have called you in the first place if it were that way."

"We could have spoken about it Hermione. Draco looks broken. He's been punishing himself. He thinks you hate him and don't want to meet him ever." Ginny said.

Hermione's face contorted painfully as Ginny went on. "He didn't even want to come home after he knew where you were hiding."

Hermione turned sharply. "But you said he came."

Ginny smirked. "So you wanted him to?"

Hermione reddened a bit. "I mean... I assumed he would come to know..."

"I had to yell at him to come off it." Ginny replied. "Of course he's come. He's staying with Harry and me till his flat's liveable."

"I have to talk to him, don't I?" Hermione stated as she added the potatoes to the pan.

"What do you think Hermione?" Ginny countered.

"I know. I know I have to tie ends with him. I don't want to run anymore." Hermione said to herself more than Ginny. "But will he want to see me? After everything I've done?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Merlin. You're pathetic. And so is the Malfoy boy. You both deserve each other."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at Ginny.

"Of course he wants to see you. He's bloody in purgatory." Ginny told her.

"Fine. You don't have to be nasty or I'll add garlic to this." Hermione said, pointing to the buttered potatoes.

Ginny wrinkled her nose. "I love garlic but my hormones apparently don't. Just leave it that way. My mouth is watering already."

Hermione laughed. "It's a good thing I cooked extra."

"Oh please." Ginny scoffed as she helped herself and Hermione a plate each. "I know you spoke to my mum. You knew very well I was coming over today."

"Maybe." Hermione said naughtily.

Ginny just shook her head and continued to dig into her potatoes as Hermione placed a slice of bread fresh from the oven next to her.

"So you're meeting him then?" Ginny asked between mouthfuls.

Hermione nodded. "I have to. It's time I said something and it's time he said some things too."

Ginny looked at Hermione, who seemed to be lost with a fork midair. She wondered how Hermione could be so blind about Draco's feelings. Well, Draco wasn't very bright about her feelings either. She sighed as she chewed away. At least they were going to have a talk. And if they did anything stupid, she and Harry would make sure that if a nudge came to a shove; they'd do it!

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Draco was pacing. An activity he never considered himself capable of. Ever since Ginny had told him that Hermione wanted to meet him and talk to him, he had been a nervous mess.

This wasn't him. He was Draco Malfoy. Smooth. Sophisticated. And suave. Ever the charmer. Playboy and never serious. And nervousness? Was a wasted trait he felt. That is why, when he was actually feeling nervous today it was a totally foreign feeling. The last he could ever remember feeling this way was when he had to face his father or his aunt. But that too bordered on worry and fear. Not so much nervousness.

Ginny had basically told him that Hermione was open to meeting him. In fact, she did want to talk to him. But Ginny had flat out refused to be a messenger of sorts to mediate any meetings.

She had told Hermione and Draco both that each knew where the other was. So if they wanted to meet, they had to take the initiative. She wasn't going to be playing go between. At least not for now.  
>Draco wanted nothing more than to storm over at Hermione's and demand answers. But then again, he was afraid of getting them. He only wanted to postpone the inevitable. He knew what decision Hermione would take and he was certain that it would be one that would definitely not make either of them happy.<p>

He angrily sat down on his bed. Fisting his palms he thought deeply. Either way, some time or the other, they would have to face each other. They were best friends. Had been that since a long time. Even when he had tried to create distance between them, there was never such awkwardness between them. So why now? Had things changed so much after one act?

He prided on knowing her needs inside out. She had even said that he always came to her when she needed him the most. He made up his mind. He wasn't going to dilly dally anymore. He was going to her this instant. Besides, he had avoided replying to her declaration in the diary all those years ago leaving her emotionally vulnerable. Of many things he regretted, that one topped his list.

Whether she reciprocated or not, he was going to bare his soul to her. Say everything that was unsaid till now and put everything out in the open. He didn't care what she thought of the night they had spent together. He was going to consider it as an act of love and nothing less. And if she regretted it, so be it.

But no guessing now. He loved her with everything he had. He always had. And letting her know was the best thing to do. It was long overdue.

**...**

It felt strange to ring a doorbell. Especially when the house belonged to a witch. He was mainly accustomed to apparating or flooing in. Therefore, when Draco stood outside Hermione's house, right hand raised to press the doorbell he felt quite out of sorts.

Not the most confident feeling when one was going to tell the woman he loved ever since he could remember that he wanted to be with them forever.

Most wizarding homes didn't even have a doorbell. But this was Hermione. Of course she had wanted a bloody doorbell. Trust her to add small touches of her muggle life in her present life. It was endearing actually, Draco thought with a smile. But right now when he was nervous as hell, the merits of a doorbell hardly interested him.

He could have easily apparated in or even flooed in. He knew that the wards would allow him. But he didn't want to surprise her by his sudden presence. He hadn't owled or informed her that he was coming. He thought that if he did that, he would lose his nerve and chicken out.

But he still didn't want to startle her. He wanted her to know that she had a visitor. Although eventually she may be surprised to see him so soon but he still didn't want to invade her privacy. He almost laughed at the irony. There was a time not too long ago that he wouldn't have ever cared about her privacy. He would have popped in and out as he pleased. And now, look at him. Being all noble and courteous.

He hated this. Hated this feeling of formality with her. He just wanted to get it over with, clear their systems and go back to being what they were. Even if she didn't love him the way he did, it was okay. All he wanted was his best friend to come back. The normalcy of their relationship. The ease of it. And he was going to get it back. He wouldn't leave without it.

So he took a final deep breath and raised his hand higher to ring the bell.

It rang, its awful tune filling the air for 5 seconds before it died down to make way for silence. But he hardly heard the silence over his pounding heartbeat and the sound of Hermione's shuffling footsteps as she came closer to the door.

He held his breath as the door opened to reveal her, looking as breathtaking as she always did even if she was only in old jeans and a very worn out t-shirt, her hair all over her head and absolutely no makeup on.

Her amber coloured eyes turned wide as she saw him and her hands clutched at the door frame. "Draco!" She breathed, barely moving away from the door.

"May I come in?"

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	51. Chapter 51

**Thank you ;**

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**For all the love and patience ! Hope this is as good as you all envisioned !**

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**CHAPTER 51.**

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"May I come in?"

Hermione stood fixed on her spot. Hands on her doorframe, tight, knuckles straining against the confines of her skin. Her initial state of surprise was replaced by anxiety and she swallowed nervously.

"Draco!" She repeated, still half behind the door that hadn't budged a bit. "You're here."

Draco shrugged casually, although he was fighting hippogriffs in his gut.

Then as if all the nervousness vanished, a questioning look came over her face. "You rang the bell?" She said incredulously.

Draco nodded again. He shouldn't have been surprised that in spite of all the other questions raging in their minds, she chose to ask him about the bloody bell.

"But you hate the contraption." She countered.

"There's always a first time." He said, with deeper meaning than it implied.

She reddened at her cheeks slightly and Draco's heart soared a little in his chest when he saw the colour on her pale, worried face.

Silence ensued for some while. Draco patiently waited while she mentally battled her demons.

"I wanted to come see you." She said finally, still resting on the door as if her life depended on it.

"I know." He said softly. "But I couldn't wait any longer." He paused. "And getting away from Ginny for a bit is always a welcome break."

Hermione stared at him unbelievingly for a fraction of a second before she gave in to a tired, genuine laugh. The heart soared a little more higher in the rib cage this time, threatening to deafen him.

She shook her head as if internally thinking that he was still the same. She finally opened the door wide and invited him in.

He entered purposefully, trying to look like a man with an agenda on the outside but terribly nervous inside.

They stood at almost opposite ends of the living room, like awkward strangers stealing looks at each other uncomfortably.

When it got unbearable Hermione said, "Why don't you sit down? Would you like some water? Or coffee perhaps?"

Draco clenched his jaw and his fists and closed his eyes tightly, silently counting till 5. He spanned the distance between them in a few long strides and held Hermione by her arms, almost ready to shake her. His tall frame towered over her petite one and she was backing the stairway. His torso blocked her completely, she was his prey but her eyes showed no fear.

"What I would really like; Hermione" he said sarcastically "is for us to stop behaving like such pathetic arses and get back to normal. You and me yelling, screaming at each other when we don't see eye to eye; that's normal. You boss over me, without any regard to my thoughts; that's normal. Me finishing your freshly brewn pot of coffee without even telling you; that's normal. You rolling your eyes at every thought of mine that you deem ridiculous; now that's normal. Me disregarding every ounce of your privacy and popping in and out of your flat; that is what is bloody normal, Hermione. Not standing outside your blasted door, ringing that obnoxious little doorbell and waiting for you to open it. And certainly not standing feet apart from you, bathed in stranger anxiety, reeking of awkwardness. And you're offering me a drink Hermione? Really?"

He was panting now, ever so slightly, from his speech. He didn't falter one word nor did he raise his voice above a whisper. Yet, every word cut through her like an icicle.

Her heart was beating as loudly as the words that reverberated in the surroundings. But in such close proximity, she couldn't fathom whether it was the fact that he had left her hardly any room to manoeuvre or the fact that he was so deliciously close to her, just like the last time she was with him that caused her pulse to betray her.

Her usually calm and logical head was swimming in a swirl of thoughtless fog as his woody, quidditch associated scent threatened to overpower her. Usually she managed to disregard its allure but his absence had exponentiated it, causing her to barely be able to string a reply in her defence.

His eyes bored into her confused ones. Little did he know that she was fighting a losing battle against all practicality. What may have seemed like buying time for excuses to Draco, was actually a testing of wills.

She raised her eyes to look into his fiery mercurial ones, jet black, stormy pupils dilated to only allow his silver rings to radiate his anger. Mistake. Big mistake.

She shouldn't have looked up. She really shouldn't have. Because she may have been the brightest witch of her age. She may have been known as the epitome of reason to many. But when her eyes met his, all the accolades flew right out.

All her carefully thought out strategies of estranging herself from him, left her conscience. Her mind blank, a fierce look encroached her features as she forced her arms out of his grasp.

His angry eyes registered a modicum of surprise at her force. But not for long. For she had used that split advantage to close the small finite distance between them as she fisted his hair roughly; the hair she had longed to touch intimately; she brought his face down to hers till she reached his unassuming lips and consumed him in a lip lock that radiated yearning and passion unknown to them both.

They both realised a long time after, that oxygen or the need for it was a major liability.

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**I know, I know its a short one. **

**And there is more don't worry.**

**More words will ensue. **

**More doubts will surface.**

**I was going to add it all in this chapter itself but this just seemed like a really good place to end.. and for once its not a complete cliffhanger; don't you just love me? ;) Lol!**

**Plus I thought you all would appreciate an update, even though its a short one, versus no update for a few more days.**

**So let me know what you think.. while I work on the dialogues for the next update.**

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**also ive forgotten the password to my ff account, luckily its on auto open on my browser so i can still access the account but im pretty sure my password was correct..anyhow now i cant even change my password without typing my old password.. so im kinda lost without email alerts etc.. if any of you can help me out with this please let me know what to do.. thanks :)**

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	52. Chapter 52

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><strong>Thank you alllllll !<strong>

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**CHAPTER 52.**

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She kept her hand against his nape, letting her slender fingers and his impeccable hair become one, the other was against his chest where she could almost feel his racing heart. A split second thought occurred to her that he was as excited as she was. She wasn't alone when it came to bounding pulse rates.

His hands meanwhile were on her waist, bunching up her rather big sized shirt. He needed to keep them in check and so what better than to hold her shirt in a death grip so he could prevent them from acting on their own accord.

Of course she had taken him by surprise. He knew the witch for almost a decade and he could swear that he knew her inside out. But that didn't stop her from springing surprises on him. The biggest of them all was how she was friends with him in the first place. He hadn't ever, as a child, imagined Hermione Granger to be his friend and such a great one that too.

Almost every day he woke up wondering what good he must have done ever that she came into his life and stayed.

But what she was doing right now topped everything. He just wanted to talk to her. Get the stupid awkwardness out of the way and become friends again. He expected her to argue and say nonsensical things like she took advantage of him and how it wasn't right and that she were left guilty.

He expected her to metaphorically run away from him again. He was ready with every counter argument she was going to make. What he wasn't ready for was this. What she was doing right now.

She left his lips for his angular jaw and Draco found himself moaning into the crook of her neck. She quickly trailed heated little kisses over his jaw as if she was in a massive hurry and reached his lips again.

Before he could get over the assault, she had opened her mouth and was urging him to do the same. The hands left her waist. They couldn't be responsible now. He slid them lower till he reached her bottom and pushed her even closer to him if it was possible.

Hermione gasped and it took only that much for Draco to assume the lead in the battle of the tongues. As if Draco's wandering hands had let out an alarm bell, Hermione suddenly pulled apart, with immense difficulty. The sudden lack of mouth to press against left him bewildered as he looked at her astonished.

Her eyes had gone wide and she had a wild look on her face. Hair astray, lips swollen beyond a doubt, her face and neck was unmistakably red. She was panting in shallow breaths as she looked at Draco who looked as dishevelled as she did. His usually well kept hair had the messed woken up look which didn't help as she wanted to grab hold of it again. His eyes weren't wide but they held confusion and was it hurt? She was seeing hurt in his eyes. What had she done? Where were her brains when she needed them the most?

He let go of her and his hands lay limp by his side, without any purpose. Hermione realised that her arms were still woven around his neck. She hastily extracted them and put them on her side as well.

They stood there awkwardly again. Looking at the wooden floor. If their prior situation seemed awkward, this was the queen of situations.

Hermione finally looked up at Draco, who was still in his place and since Hermione also hadn't moved, it meant they were still very close. She caught his eyes for a split second before she shut them in mortification tightly and just leaned her forehead into his chest.

His solid chest that she had held herself against so many times. She felt at home. How he had grown! From the hateful little boy to the experimental Draco and now to the man that she had loved even when he was a boy. His body had grown with him, but whenever she hugged him, it felt the same. Safe. Secure. Content. At home.

And although her emotions were a whirlpool right now, she still strangely felt at peace. Luna had once told her a long time ago, in a very different context; actually Hermione hadn't understood the context even then. Which wasn't entirely shocking as very few people ever understood Luna. But she had said that people usually spend so much energy fighting things that if something was going to happen, it would rebound with double force because of all the unnecessary negative energy that's trying to push it away.

Hermione still hadn't learned about what Luna was talking about then, but strangely, right now her words seemed to be holding their own.

Hermione sighed as she continued to hold her forehead against Draco's chest. Neither dared to raise their arms from their current position. After a few seconds, Hermione looked up.

"Are you going to run away again?" Draco asked her.

Hermione laughed a wet laugh. "I seem to do that an awful lot don't I ? Every time I do something stupid, I run away."

"You think you did something stupid?" Draco asked with an edge to his voice.

"Well, my actions haven't been exactly quite bright now have they?" She retaliated. "First I run away from family and friends without even a word and don't even revert back. Next I guilt my best friend into sleeping with me and instead of talking it out like an adult, I take off again. And now; when said friend acts like an adult to 'talk' about it, I attack him again! Pray, tell me in this whole scenario where you see the wisdom?"

Draco gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "Hermione, you didn't guilt me into it. I promise you, I knew all along what I was getting into. If you think it's a mistake, then it was as much my fault as it was yours. You cannot shoulder the entire blame." He said firmly.

"You think I don't remember the look on your face when I kissed you?" Hermione hissed. "It was the exact look you had right now. The one that screamed what the hell is she doing? I remember you resisting that night Draco. Don't you even try to deny It."

"Of course I tried resisting you Hermione." Draco said his voice an octave higher. "What did you expect me to do? Just let you go ahead? You have no idea just how simple it would have been for me to just not think and go with what was happening. But I couldn't do that to you. Merlin woman, you were beside yourself that night. How could I let your clouded judgement take over? I didn't want you to do something you'd regret later. I was trying not to take advantage of you. But as you pointed out, I tried resisting. Clearly it wasn't enough."

Hermione breathed in deeply and placed her palms on her eyes. Shaking her head, she opened her eyes. "You didn't want to take advantage of me?" She asked unbelievingly.

"Of course I didn't." Draco yelled.

"Draco, I almost forced you to be with me. It's me who took advantage of you. I knew you'd never refuse me." Hermione stressed.

Draco shook his head fervently. "No no no. I could have stopped. And I should have. It's just your eyes, Hermione. I saw your eyes and you were just so upset and you looked and felt so rejected... I just... I just couldn't bear to see you that way."

Hermione's face softened at this. "I wasn't drunk or anything. I knew what I was doing. It's just... I know I normally don't do things like this but at that moment I just needed to feel needed, you know?"

Draco took her hand in his and stroked his thumb on the dorsum of her palm. "You didn't have to be drunk. You were upset and I was there. We're friends. And you needed the closeness. I understand. I also gathered that when you'd wake up, you'd go ballistic with guilt. But I never thought you'd run away from me." He said softly.

A drop of tear fell from her left eye. "I just felt so guilty for doing this to you. For confusing you. For misleading you."

"Hey look, we're both adults right? And I can take care of myself from forceful wenches. And trust me when I tell you this, it's only because of my will of steel that you were able to realise that I was resisting you. Because Hermione, trust me; resisting you or even trying to is the hardest thing I've done till date."

Hermione laughed slightly. "Will of steel?"

Draco shrugged importantly.

"So you aren't mad at me for using you?"

"Hell no." Draco laughed. "If that's how you want to use me, feel free to use me anytime you want to."

"Draco!" Hermione admonished him with wide eyes.

"What?" Draco smirked. "At your service."

"I can't believe you're joking about this." Hermione said. "This could have been the end of our friendship."

"But it's not." Draco emphasised. "It's not right? You're not going to exile yourself from my life are you? Because I know how your mind works. You did not use me nor are you going to lose me over this. I'm still Draco and you're still Hermione. Nothing's changed."

"Draco, I just... I need some time." Hermione swallowed. "It's not easy..."

"I knew you'd regret it." Draco yelled as he banged his fist across the banister. "I knew it. I knew the moment you'd wake, you would regret it. And you know why I even tried to resist you Hermione? It was because of this. Not because I thought it was a bad idea or not because I didn't want this, because believe me when I say I wanted it, but it was because I didn't want to see the regret and the shame and the guilt on your face the next day. One night our friendship would have survived Hermione. But you over think everything so much and guilt your mind into hating you. And the regret would kill you. So help me if I wanted to spare you the pain and me the misery."

He was backing her now and breathing more heavily. He just couldn't understand what her problem was. Here he was, telling her in earnest that it was a mutual decision and he didn't feel used one bit, but she refused to listen.

"You ... You wanted to be with me?" Hermione asked timidly. "Why?"

Draco turned and looked at her as if she had lost her marbles. "Why? Why? Are you blind Hermione? Just look at you. You are the purest person I know. Even associating with me has not tainted you. You are kind and caring, passionate and filled with compassion. Bloody stubborn but so endearing. Loyal to a fault and not to mention so breathtakingly and innocently beautiful that not seeing you is like a punishment but seeing you causes me physical pain because every time I look at you, I am reminded of what I could have had; what we could have had and I threw it all away. And now it's too late. I've lost it all, I've lost you and I've lost any possibility of us. All I have is Hermione Granger, my best friend. And losing us is something I can even bear because I hadn't tasted it. But losing my friend would kill me. And the past few days have been just that. So please Hermione. I beg of you. I beg you to just forget what happened and have the heart to move on because I don't know about you but if I lose you, again, I won't be able to make it."

Draco's eyes were burning with a mix of intensity and a thin layer of tear film that had somehow formed itself. Hermione just stood staring at him. Mouth slightly open. She was clutching the banister tightly now because Godric knew she needed the support.

Draco lowered his eyes. This wasn't the way he wanted to tell her. He had planned on calming her down and just being honest with her. But somewhere down the line, he had gotten worked up and it all just started flying out of his mouth.

He looked up again; Hermione seemed to be pretty much in the same position. Draco sighed. So much for calming her down.

"Look Hermione, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout... "

"What did you mean?" Hermione asked. "When you said US?"

"Hermione... "

"Draco, what did you mean by it?" Hermione questioned again. "Because what you just said has gone way ahead of the topic."

"No Hermione." Draco stated. "On the contrary, it's very much related to the topic."

"Draco ..."

"I love you." He blurted. "Okay? I love you. Always have and I still do. I'm in love with you Hermione."

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**OKay so i hope this didn't disappoint...**


	53. Chapter 53

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**I laboured on the previous chapter quite a bit and I'm really pleased that you all liked it so much!**

**Thank you everyone.**

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**CHAPTER 53.**

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It was as if someone had petrified her.

She stood rigid as the silence reverberated around Draco's words which were seeping in through her system.

Draco looked resigned yet relieved. No reaction was certainly better than a negative reaction. Everything had happened so long ago that it was expected that Hermione would be shocked by what he had just said.

"Hermione I ..."

"You said you love me?" She asked blankly.

"Yes..."

"And that you always have?" She asked again.

"Yes Hermione. I have always loved you. Ever since I could relate to the emotion. Ever since the Yule ball." He said.

Hermione's eyes went wide. Draco was relieved to see some reaction.

"You .. You .. Since then.. So long.. Since so long." She blabbered.

"Look Hermione, I know this may seem surprising but ..."

"No." She shook her head violently. "No Draco, it's not really. I always thought you loved me too then. But it's been so long. Why didn't you tell me? Why did you wait so long? It's been 10 years Draco. An entire decade!"

Draco looked ashamed for a moment but then he finally looked up and went closer towards her. He snuck his fingers through hers and looked into her eyes. "That night, when you wrote in the diary... And I was trying to reply.. Hermione I wanted to write those words back to you. Believe me I did. I wanted to write them with all my heart."

Hermione looked up at his eyes with tears pooling in her own. She had seen the love there for her. If only he could have said it too.

"But I think it was for the best that I didn't get to." Draco sighed. "I couldn't involve you further into the madness. It was enough that you were Harry Potter's best friend. Being mine would guarantee you harm. I couldn't do that to you."

Hermione closed her eyes. "And when it was all over..."

"You were with Weasley." Draco completed her statement. "Which was a good thing really." He said, swallowing his words with difficulty.

"I thought that with me out of the picture, you would finally give the chemistry between you and him a chance. It was only a matter of time really." Draco said.

Hermione jerked her fingers out of his. "You ... You ... Set this up? On purpose?"

"I only pushed way for the obvious Hermione." He said matter of factly. "You would have been safe with him. And happy. You can't deny that."

"Of course I was." She hissed. "I loved him. I loved him and it all happened because of you. If you hadn't gone about playing martyr, I would have never leaned on Ron. I would have never fallen in love with him or married him. He would have married someone else, had kids and probably lived."

"Are you even listening to yourself Granger?" Draco asked irritably. "How in the world was it your fault that he died? You're taking the guilt too far."

"Am I?" She yelled. "Really? I married a man I was in love with while I was still in love with you. Do you know how messed up it was? How guilty I felt every day? Why do you think I ran away from you too? I still love Ron and I love you. How is that normal? And most importantly how is that fair to either of you?"

He took a step forward till he was touching her. He took her face in his hands and looked deep into her eyes. She shied away at first but he put his finger under her chin and tilted it up so that she was forced to look at him.

"Look here Granger," he said roughly. "What happened had to happen. We are wizards and witches here. Not God. His living or dying had nothing to do with you. Even if you hadn't married him, he would have still died. His time had come. And as much as harsh it sounds, it's the truth. There was nothing you could have done. And you of all the people should know that once contracted in adulthood, spattergroit is always fatal."

Hermione had closed her eyes by now, unable to look at Draco. Little rivulets of tears were flowing across her cheeks. He wiped them away with the pads of his thumbs and then ran his hand across her hair, flattening it and getting it out of her face. Still holding her face in his hands, he lowered his face to place delicate kisses on her eyelids. He went on to place sweet little kisses all over her face. Her Cheeks, nose, forehead, chin and finally he pecked at her lips gently and chastely.

He held her by the waist and hugged her. Reflexively she hugged him back and settled into his chest. He rested his head on her shoulder and kissed her ear sweetly. She shuddered at the contact and snuggled closer to him. He smiled at the warmth and the closeness and sighed internally. How many years had gone by imagining this with her. And here she was, finally in his arms. After ten long years.

"It's none of your fault." He whispered. "You have such a big heart. It's okay to love us both. We were both lucky to love you and have you love us back. Circumstances weren't right for me to tell you my feelings then. And even though watching you get married to Weasley was the hardest thing I'd done in life, I was still proud of myself that I did the right thing. And I'd do it all over again."

Hermione released herself from his grip and looked up to him for a second before she stood on her tiptoes and brought his head down to claim his lips in a searing kiss. Draco got the feeling that she was trying to talk through the kiss what words couldn't say.

They parted but still stayed close. "I'm so damaged Draco." Hermione said.

"Am I'm not?" Draco scoffed. "I've watched people being tortured in front of my eyes Hermione. I was ordered to do the same. The horrors I've seen, I didn't think I'd ever be able to let that go. But I had to. For you. Your face kept coming in front of my eyes. And because I kept thinking what answer I would give to you if I turned into a death eater, I managed to avoid being one. We all have our scars Hermione. That doesn't mean people will stop loving us."

"I spent more than a year mourning the death of the person I loved." Hermione stated. "How can you bear that? And how can I suddenly be with you and be happy?"

"Hermione, I know you." Draco said. "I know that when you give, you give it your all. If you married Ron, you loved him with everything. Of course you're entitled to mourn his loss. I won't take that away from you. It may seem like sharing you but I'd rather share you than not have you in my life at all."

He then proceeded to kiss her tear stained eyelids and cheeks all over till he reached her lips again and gently kissed her many times. She didn't stop him but she didn't kiss him back either. She just stood there, eyes spilling and he went on kissing her; salty kisses nonetheless.

"That night was just a culmination of what I've felt for you since a long long time Hermione." Draco said. "It wasn't a onetime thing; or a mistake. For me it was making love to you. And I had never imagined it to happen ever. I don't also expect it to happen again because I don't know how you feel. But today I had decided that whatever happened I'd let you know about my feelings. I've spent ten years not telling you. And even though some things may be unsaid, I needed to let you know that I love you; I always have and always will with all my heart. You made me the person I am today and if I'm even remotely human it's because of you. I learnt the concept of love from you and I'm eternally in love with you; of that I'm sure. I don't want it to be uncertain anymore Hermione. And I don't expect anything in return. All I wanted is for you to know."

"I... All this... Draco .."

"It's too much." Draco stated. "I can imagine. But it's the truth Hermione. I don't expect you to say that you love me back. All I wanted was to tell you. And to have you back as a friend."

Hermione swallowed. "Draco, I love you too. I have nothing against saying that. But I just can't transition into anything more for you right now."

"That's enough for me." He said gently.

"But I know I can. I love you. And after all these years I still do." Hermione said fervently. "Please help me. Give me some time."

Draco smiled broadly for the first time in what seemed like days. "I'd wait all my life for you."

"I don't know what I did to deserve you Draco." Hermione said.

"Don't steal my line Granger." Draco teased.

Hermione swatted his arm playfully before giving him an experimental, shy kiss and breaking away from him.

"So, what now?" Hermione asked tentatively.

"Now," Draco said decisively and very seriously. "We continue where we left. Where's your bedroom Granger?"

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**I know! I've taken very long...**

**My apologies!**

**But real life gets in the way!**

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as you did the last!**

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	54. Chapter 54 : EPILOGUE

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**For all the amazing views I got for the last chapter !**

**To just clear it out; Draco's last line was in jest ! Just a joke, to show that the old joking Draco is back ! He wasn't seriously meaning it !**

**CHAPTER 54.**

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_**EPILOGUE.**_

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She slammed him against the wall and attacked him like a predator. Fisting his hair had become a rather enjoyable habit for her. Oh how she loved his silky locks.

And how he loved it when she took charge. The old Hermione Granger, the fastidious and furious one that had punched sense into him all those years ago, was back. Oh she was punching now too and how.

"Granger!" Draco panted.

"What?" Hermione growled as she nipped his neck right under his ear.

Draco moaned unwantingly and Hermione stopped for a moment to flash him a smirk akin to his own.

"How many times" she panted in between biting kisses upon him "have I to tell you, that's its Malfoy now."

He flipped her at that, very very turned on when she called herself a Malfoy. He would, often out of habit call her Granger but she corrected him every time.

"Every time." He panted as she raised her legs in one swift motion and circled his waist. He supported her buttocks but buckled when she kneaded his scalp agonisingly thoroughly, sending his nerve endings in a dizzying spell. He steadied himself against the wall. Fine. She wanted to play. Two could play at this.

He raised his hips and ground against her. She gasped and clenched his hair. Pain could never feel like pleasure, Draco thought. Except now. "So, Mrs. Malfoy" he said as his hands slid through her shirt over the expanse of her back. "Are you sure Healer Granger would approve of this activity we are indulging in?"

Hermione barely heard the question. She busied herself in divesting Draco's shirt. After a successful venture she smirked at him and pushed him towards their water bed. "I'm sure she will." Hermione said, in between nips that she was placing all over Draco's pale quidditch seasoned torso. "After all, you should know how hormonal your wife gets during pregnancy."

Then she lost her shirt. Draco was fair that way. If he had no shirt on, neither could she. He teased her with playful pecks on her shoulders and cheeks, all very chaste. She growled in dissatisfaction and arched her back towards him to close the distance he had been creating.

"You're horrible." She barked. "Wait till this hormonal surge is gone. I'll make you pay."

"By all means." Draco smirked. "Please collect."

She grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to come closer, working on his pants with her feet in the meantime. He grabbed her lips and dug through her mouth, ravishing it in a way she wanted him too. "You don't waste any time do you ?" He panted against her mouth.

"You waste entirely too much." She retaliated.

His laughter reverberated through his chest and reached her's as he discarded her larger than normal size bra, crushing her as he mimicked her actions and removed her skirt.

"You do realise that this means we will have to get dressed again don't you?" Draco asked as his fingers wove magic through her.

"Why can't you for once just shut up?" She insisted.

"You know you like it." He laughed.

"Most men would kill to be seduced like this by their wife. You on the other hand are always amused." She said.

"Hmm. Amused yeah. But also thankful." Draco said. "I love it when you're pregnant."

"And when I'm not?" She queried.

"I love you then too." He said gently. "The idea of loving you and someone that's half you and half me still blows me away."

Her blazing eyes softened for a bit. "And the raging hormones?"

"That's just bonus." He said dazzlingly.

"Prat." She commented. "I hate when you're right."

"How so?"

"I love it more when you talk." She whispered as he couldn't wait any longer and neither could she.

They didn't talk for a while after.

.

.  
>"It was supposed to be quick!" Hermione yelled.<p>

"Hey!" Draco said. "It wasn't my idea."

"Yeah? Now you play the blame game."

"Naturally." Draco said. "No way am I facing Ginny's wrath. I can't help it that you got carried away and lost track of time."

Hermione glared at her husband. "We would have been on time if you hadn't decided to be such a tease."

"Well what's the point then?" He asked cheekily.

Hermione glowered a bit more as she hastily pulled her zip up and tried to straighten her now very crumpled shirt.

"Good thing we sent Alex earlier with Albus." Hermione said as she brushed her hair in vain.

"Yeah." Draco grinned. "You must've known that one of your moods was coming in. So why not send our first born away?"

She threw the hairbrush at him which he effectively dodged. Where was her wand when she needed it?

"Ginny's going to kill me if we miss Ronnie's cake cutting." Hermione wailed as she slid into her sandals. "Are you done?" She asked irked.

Draco stood there, perfectly assembled as ever even after a hot afternoon of unplanned passion. He barely had moved and he was still ready before her. She was fuming. She really was.

She wanted to just cross the distance of the few steps between them and tear his creaseless shirt open once again. No. No Hermione. Get a grip. Gather yourself. Ginny will kill you if you miss your godson's 5th birthday.

So with such reaffirming words in her head, she gave Draco one last vengeful look and disappeared.

Draco laughed and shook his head before he too disapparated to the Potter's.

Luckily, the cake was still standing and Ginny was nowhere near it. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh. What a pleasure." She heard a sarcastic voice.

Her heart sank.

She turned around. "Harry, I ... "

"Please no! La dee da la dee da ... " Harry yelled with fingers in his ears.

"What is the matter with you ?" Hermione asked looking shocked.

"I don't want to hear it." Harry said, still not removing his fingers from his ears.

"Hear what?" Hermione asked in exasperation.

"Your escapades with Malfoy." Harry said with utter distaste.

"It's Draco!" Hermione insisted. "And he's my husband!" She insisted. "And what are you talking about?" She reddened just a bit. She longed to look at herself. Was her hair out of place? Had she buttoned her shirt? Merlin! Had she forgotten her bra? As the scenarios flashed through her head, she struggled to keep her hands to herself so as to not affirm Harry's accusations.

"Oh please." Harry scoffed. "Do not insult my intelligence. I totally know why you are so late. Don't make me say it."

"Whatever." Hermione averted her eyes. "Where's Gin? And where are Alex and Albus?"

"You're really lucky this time." Harry stated. "Alex and Albus had an accidental burst of magic.. Nothing big.. Just some balloons started spraying water. So she got busy. Effectively buying you time." Harry said.

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief again. "But they're only 2! How could they have shown magic?"

Harry shrugged. "Happens sometimes. And anyway aren't you a Healer? Shouldn't you be cautious during pregnancy?" He narrowed his eyes to show what he meant.

Hermione flushed. "I've been pregnant before remember? And so has your wife in case you'd forgotten. And you do realise we talk about almost everything don't you? Don't make me open my mouth."

Harry's ears reddened. He decided to call it a truce.

Hermione laughed. "You're such a bloody gossip Harry. You should have been an old maid."

"Fine. I'm just concerned about you." Harry said.

"Concerned! Hogwash." Hermione laughed. "All you're concerned about is pulling my leg. Now let's go find that wife of yours before my husband fills her ears against me."

"I agree." Harry sighed. "They are too close for my comfort."

"Old maid." Hermione muttered as they found their way towards Ginny.

"Mummm mummm mumm" the sandy blond toddler cried out the moment he saw Hermione.

"There's my little pie." Hermione cooed as she bent down to pick her son and cuddle him. 'Were you good for aunt Ginny?"

"Booom" he said and laughed.

"Boom!" Another two year old said as soon as Alex said that. Hermione looked down to see a miniature Harry who was against Hermione's leg, begging to be picked up.

Hermione laughed and adjusted the two of them on both her arms with some difficulty.

"So you both played some magic mischief today didn't you?" Hermione fake scolded them.

"Don't ask." Ginny breezed in. "Of all the days. You're lucky I'm too swamped to interrogate you about your utter lack of hair care and tardiness."

Hermione's hand immediately went to her hair. It most probably was sticking up from behind. Damn Draco! He didn't tell her that it wasn't combed right. No wonder Harry and Ginny were on her case. Her resolve to find Draco and rip his shirt off increased.

Damn these hormones! Hermione had never felt so charged before. Her last pregnancy had been similar. And after that Draco had said that they should at least have 5 children. Hermione had just glared at him. But when they had learnt 4 months ago that Hermione was pregnant again, the parents-to-be were thrilled. Draco and Hermione had been alone while growing up and they had promised themselves that they would never let their future child be so lonely.

Thus when 2 years into their marriage when she got pregnant for the first time, she knew that in spite of all the morning sickness and the heaviness and the mood swings, she wanted more children.

Alexander Scorpius Malfoy was born and Draco couldn't wait to spoil him. Partly because he wanted to be everything to his son that Lucius wasn't to him and partly because he knew that Hermione would be the one to keep him in check. So he naturally had to be the fun parent.

Ginny and Hermione had almost become pregnant at the same time. Draco was surprised that after Ronald James, they took so long to get pregnant again, given their insatiable appetite for each other. And Albus Severus Potter was born just a little more than 2 months after Alex. He was glad that Hermione had Ginny as a pregnant partner because she was paranoid during her first pregnancy. Although she was a Healer, she was a mother first and the need to be one had been in her for so long that she wouldn't be able to bear it if anything would have gone wrong.

But now, after Alex, she was more confident and even the mood swings seemed lesser. Sometimes, at night when Draco was asleep, with his arm protectively around her torso, she would think of Ron. And how much he had wanted this. And she was sure that had he been there, she would have given it to him. But she knew Ron. And although he could be possessive, he would have always wanted Hermione to be happy and have their happy ending. Even if it were with Draco Malfoy.

Draco had been nothing but patient and persistent at the same time. She needed him as a friend and he had been that and more. In her heart, she knew she was his. She only needed some time to allow her heart to rid her of the guilt and to allow herself to feel wanted and deserved happiness.

Harry and Ginny had been more persistent and blatant than Draco. Ginny kept insisting that Hermione should get off her high horse and accept Draco already. Harry said the same things but not so flatteringly like Ginny. Both Draco and Harry had started hanging out together and in spite of their constant denial, they did enjoy their male time together. Ginny and Hermione were constantly amused by this and Hermione's love and respect for Draco grew. If he could befriend her friends, who had been his enemies in school then she really needed to give him a chance.

Ginny had been her maid of honour and believe it or not, Blaise as well as Harry had been Draco's best men. Katherine had been her bridesmaid and the wedding took place on the bridge in Australia where they had bungee jumped. Hermione found it fitting, since that was the day that she had felt, for the first time in months; the desire to live.

Draco's face had been split into half by his grin. His eyes were shining and his face looked like a light bulb. His happiness knew no bounds and he had had eyes only for his beautiful bride. They had gone for a month long honeymoon and Hermione had relocated to England and started work at St. Mungos.

Draco quit his team and was offered a placement in England itself. He couldn't bear to travel and be away from Hermione anymore.

"Maybe you shouldn't have thrown the brush at me." A husky voice crept up behind her. "Your hair still needs some brushing." He chuckled lowly.

Hermione felt goose bumps at the nape of her neck when she heard the words. "Couldn't have told me earlier?" She asked.

"Really now?" Draco smiled as his hand crept around her waist and pulled her closer. He nuzzled her neck and and breathed her scent in. Hermione shut her eyes reflexively and almost moaned. "How long have you known me for?"

"Far too long." She whispered and gasped as his hand caressed her hip. "Draco! It's Ginny's kitchen."

"Hmmm." He said carelessly. "I bet this kitchen has seen a lot worse. Where do you think Albie was conceived?"

"Draco!" Hermione admonished him mockingly. She couldn't stay mad at him for long. He was her Draco after all. Merlin! They really needed to get out of this party or he needed to get his hands off her.

"Coming dear!" Molly Weasley's loud voice could be heard as she entered the kitchen.

Draco dropped his hand like it had just touched hot coal but it was too late. Molly had entered and given him and Hermione a knowing grin before shaking her head and grabbing the candles.

Hermione was crimson by now and she glared at Draco again. She turned to follow Molly into the living room where all of Ronnie's friends and the Weasley clan had gathered to celebrate Ronald's birthday. Draco followed her closely.

Before she reached the party, he grabbed her and kissed her suddenly, holding her extremely close. "We're not done yet."

She kissed him back, slowly and torturously, messing his hair. "Draco" she said breathily against his lips. "We'll never be done."

They separated for air and Draco kissed her forehead. Holding her hand tightly in his, they made their way towards the table where their adorable 5 year old godson stood, eyes shining, in front of his cake.

Draco picked up Alex and Harry did the same with Albus. His other hand still held Hermione's as they sang "Happy Birthday."

He looked around and his gaze came to fall upon his small family. He still didn't know how he came to be so lucky. After all these years and everything that had transpired; his dreams and fantasies had actually turned into reality.

He kissed his son who hadn't stopped clapping yet and then bent down to kiss his wife's only slightly bumpy stomach. His eyes met her lovely, expressive ones as he leaned in and kissed her sweetly. "I love you." He said, for at least the 6th time that day.

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**Okay! Phew!**

**So that was the end!**

**I can't really end a story without an epilogue!**

**I'm so lost now that this story is over!**

**Hopefully some new plot should come to mind!**

**I'll update on this chapter any future stories, if at all in the making!**

**I realllly reallly enjoyed writing this story!**

**The feedback and love I received for this story was overwhelming and it really helped me to go on!**

**I do hope all you readers have enjoyed this journey with me as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**Thank you very much!**

**Till the next one!**

**Much love!**

**Avidficreader !**

**.**


	55. Chapter 55 : Acknowledgement

**A Very hearty thank you to all my readers and reviewers;**

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**For all the wonderful reviews! I sincerely hope i've not forgotten to mention any reviewer!**

**reviews and readers make a story and i would not have ever reached so far without all the feedback .**

**thank you for staying with me and i hope you continue to read my other stories as well.**

**I'm not decided on my next story yet but i shall update on this story when i do decide to write some more.**

**till then, God Bless and take care!**

**avidficreader!**

**...**


	56. Chapter 56

Hello all!

I've started writing another Dramione fic!

Its called Dysfunctional Normalities!

Please check it out! Hope you all like it!

Thank you!

Avidficreader.


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